Adaptation (2003)

Film adaptation? Biological adaptation? Emotional adaptation?

A very strange self-referenced, self-involved, solipsistic film about a screenplay about a book about a flower. An article appeared in the New Yorker about orchids in the Everglades, it was turned into a book, Charlie Kaufmann was commissioned to turn it into a screenplay, Charlie Kaufmann didn't know how to write it as a screenplay so he reinvented himself as Woody Allen and wrote a screenplay about Woody Allen struggling to write a screenplay. The story works on many outrageous levels, and there are tons of brilliant scenes, just as there are tons of brilliant distractions. Kaufman also rather unsubtly uses the multiple meanings of the word "adaptation" to get even deeper, and more literary. Great stuff, very good. Kaufmann invents a twin brother, both of which are played by a very remarkable Nicholas Cage outperforming Eddie Murphy and Jeremy Irons in the dual role thing, and then "resolves" him in a very amazing way. Well, talk about catharsis! Kaufmann plays the ultimate joke by highjacking the original novel and turning it into a conflict that is man vs man, man vs nature, man vs himself, man vs drug-crazed hippy intellectuals. Insane. December 25, 2008

One of my favorites

Disappointed when I saw it in the theater, but multiple viewings have made me a rabid fan. This movie is so clever, amusing, hilarious, provocative, heartbreaking, poignant, honest, and ultimately so satisfying for all its ambiguity. To try to describe or synopsize it is like tying lead weights to the tail of a whirling kite.

As for the gorgeous writing and observations-- whose are they??? I read the book after seeing the movie and found that some of what we are led to believe are Orleans' most honest and beautiful passages really belong to Kaufman. Wildly original. Highly recommended. December 24, 2008

Most Original Movie I've Ever Seen

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. December 2, 2008

in a league of its own

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. November 25, 2008

A movie without a script

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. October 17, 2008

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