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 Most Original Movie I've Ever Seen Dec 02, 2008
To say the least, Charlie Kaufman's "Adaptation" is the most original movie I've ever seen. It is at once an adaptation of Susan Orlean's book The Orchid Thief, a bio pic, a reflection on Kaufman's (played by Cage) many tries at writing said adaptation, and a dissection of film conventions. The busy narrative, which shifts back and forth in time, calls for the full attention of the audience. It's an engaging film that will keep the wheels turning in your head long after the final credits roll.
Spike Jonze does beautiful work with Kaufman's considerably hard to film script, showing deep understanding of the script. Nicholas Cage gives a career defining performance as both Charlie and Doug Kaufman (Charlie's fictional brother), evoking more emotions than I thought the man was capable of. Meryl Streep is great here as well, but my choice for the best supporting actor has to go to Chris Cooper, who gave a strange, sometimes scary, and always heartbreaking performance as John LaRoche, who is as much the tragic hero of this tale as Kaufman. If you're looking for an intelligent film with an engaging and innovative screenplay, skillful direction, and a talented cast, "Adaptation" will easily exceed all your expectations.
To put it simply, "Adaptation" is a movie about Kaufman trying to write "Adaptation." It's mind blowing, wholly original, and probably one of the most intelligently written films of all time.
10/10 Classic.
in a league of its own Nov 25, 2008
Original and breathtaking!
The subject of the story is less important because when it's taken to this level of creativity, it's cinema.
The opening sequence is outrageous without losing focus, it is a movie unto itself and it's part of what the movie is about; evolution.
The scenes with Nicolas Cage are funny and neurotic, infused with irony, frustration and the madness of a struggling artist and Meryl Streep is not a supporting character but a presence.
So why does the director decide to unravel the whole thing in a ridiculous ending, like pulling a thread from your favourite, beautifully wooven sweater and destroying it? He wanted to remind us of a few things; a movie is a movie, not life or maybe he's reminding us that this is the price of commercialism? In the end he allows Cage's character to have a little fun and forget perfection. And why did he do all this?
I believe he wanted to remind us, he is the creator and that in the end the script doesn't have a mind of its own; it is victim to every Dick, Harry or Jane. But before we ever get to the ending, the film presented great moments of self-discovery and lingering moments that showed a new self-awareness with Streep's character. Also wonderful character development with Chris Cooper, who plays a man obssesed with one particular flower, a man who understands beauty and the commitment, it takes to survive something horrible.
Spike Jonze has created a film with visual abandon and without fancy special effects. Only imagination.
 A movie without a script Oct 17, 2008
This is the story of how to write a screenplay from a book without a story. It is a desperate and obsessive research of emotions, of meanings, of love in the documentary "The Orchid Thief" that corresponds to an intimate research of itself that will culminate in the complete fusion between the story he is writing and his own life.
This movie should be just about flowers and nothing else, Charlie Kaufman (Nicolas Cage) says but it became a movie about its own script. It is original and explore the creativity of an artist.
Not for the Casual Surface Dweller Oct 13, 2008
This movie Rocks! I can honestly say it is one of the most inspiring and intelligent movies of the decade. If you've ever been in a relationship (any will do) where you felt squashed and unable to breathe; due to your own inequities or imagined; Charlie Kaufman will free the jar of captured fireflies just for you; Meryl Streep is superb! Chris Cooper made me weep. I wrote a poem just for Charlie Kaufman once b/c I truly understand how he feels. All I can say is that I could watch this movie every day and not get bored.
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A great film by Charlie Kaufman...so what's new? Oct 02, 2008
This movie is absolutely great. It has great humor, action, and drama...not to mention, Nicholas Cage is actually good in it. Yes, the same Nicholas Cage guilty of having the worst fake accent EVER (in Con-Air) is really believable (and funny, in the case of Donald Kaufman) in this movie. The rest of the cast is also great, and the script is just plain brilliant. You can tell Kaufman had fun writing this one, and it is a hell of a lot of fun to watch.
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