Charming Craziness Runs Rampant In Spike Jonze's Debut Directorial Effort Being John Malkovich

I'll be right upfront and proclaim myself as a total Spike Jonze fanboy. When I saw Where The Wild Things Are as a thirteen-year-old, I had no prior experience with his filmmaking but the movie itself was so captivating and incredible that I knew I would never forget Spike Jonze's name. Just a few yeas later, Jonze managed to surpass his 2009 achievement with the masterpiece Her, one of the best movies made in the 21st century. Since seeing those two in their theatrical runs, I've also gone back and watched the superb Adaptation and have no finally rounded out Spike Jonze's feature film directorial catalog by finally viewing his debut effort Being John Malkovich, which paired him up with writer Charlie Kaufman, the writer of Adaptation.

Love & Mercy Review

All You Need Is Love...And Elizabeth Banks

Where exactly has John Cusack gone off to? After appearing in the highest grossing movie of his career in 2009 with the blockbuster 2012, the actor has become rare to find in a major feature film. Since the start of this decade, he's only starred in two movies that made it to wide release (Hot Tub Time Machine and The Raven) and has spent his time appearing in direct-to-DVD action films and thrillers. A pity, since Love & Mercy shows the guy still has chops and deserves better than what he's worked with recently.

So, I Was On Netflix: The Frozen Ground

There's few other actors that I pity more than Nicolas Cage. I really wish he could make a comeback from the rut he's been stuck in since 2010, when The Sorcerers Apprentice signaled the start of a dark period for the actor that's been chock full of box office and critical flops. Which is a shame, because the dudes actually a really talented actor. His devotion to any role is to be admired, as even in abysmal movies like Ghost Rider 2, Nicolas Cage just commits. Sometimes that delivers good acting, sometimes acting that's lacking, but most of his work displays some noticeable level of craftsmanship that is to be admired.