The Film: Being John Malkovich (1999), available today on Blu-ray and DVD via The Criterion Collection
Why It’s an Inessential Essential: It’s strange to think that a film with John Malkovich’s name in its title isn’t really considered to be “a John Malkovich movie.” Instead, Being John Malkovich is understandably normally associated with screenwriter Charlie Kaufman and director Spike Jonze, both of whom really broke out thanks to BJM’s success. While Jonze reveals on The Criterion Collection’s new audio commentary track that he and Kaufman were dead-set on getting Malkovich for the film, Being John Malkovich could really be about any celebrity. At the same time, that’s one of the many things that’s funny about Being John Malkovich: It’s a metaphysical black comedy about what people projecting things onto celebrities that don’t necessarily have anything to do with those celebrities.
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Because losing one indelible artist last Friday apparently wasn't enough, the cosmos has now claimed illustrator and author Maurice Sendak. The creator of Where the Wild Things Are reportedly suffered a stroke last Friday and died early today at a hospital in Danbury, Conn. He was 83.
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Among the many stream of consciousness topics Kanye West brain-dumped in his epic Twitter session Wednesday night -- his professional frustrations, his fashion aspirations, his new design company aimed at picking up where Steve Jobs left off -- was a brief mention of one curious film project in particular. "I was just discussing becoming the creative director for the Jetson [sic] movie and..." Wait, WHAT? The Jetsons, as in the long-gestating live-action Jetsons movie? And Kanye would have a hand in making this happen? Mr. West, you've got my attention now.
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Since news broke that a Lady Gaga biopic may be in the works, I've fretted. The 25-year-old superstar is ripe for a big-screen toasting, but she's only been a phenomenon since the latter half of 2008. Would you want to watch a Madonna biopic that stopped after the release of True Blue? Of course not. Lady Gaga has a gnarly, couture-bedecked arc ahead of her, and I say if she's destined to be a cineplex draw, why not adapt her eight-track mini-album The Fame Monster into a full-fledged film?
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What do you get when you combine Jay-Z, Kanye West, pyrotechnics and an Otis Redding sample? Apparently, the new Spike Jonze-directed music video for "Otis," a track off of Jay-Z and Kanye West's collaborative album Watch the Throne inspired by Redding's "Try a Little Tenderness." Click through to take a look at the explosive fun and keep an eye out for a cameo by 30 Minutes or Less star Aziz Ansari.
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