Being John Malkovich fingerprintMasterful craft, funny, light on feelings.
Calm and low-key
Wondrous
Plenty of absurdist humor and sharp wit
The mind, show business, and society
Lived-in and easy to get lost in. Holds up on a rewatch.
Standout direction, performances, and storytelling
Layered plot that rewards full attention.
Standout cinematography, editing, and visual style
A distinctive visual signature.
Calm and low-key
Being John Malkovich is calm and low-intensity.
Wondrous
Emotionally, it's wondrous.
Plenty of absurdist humor and sharp wit
Expect plenty of absurdist humor and sharp wit.
The mind, show business, and society
Lived-in and easy to get lost in. Holds up on a rewatch.
Its world is built around the mind, show business, and society. The setting feels lived-in and easy to get lost in. It holds up on a rewatch. It leaves some questions open.
Standout direction, performances, and storytelling
Layered plot that rewards full attention.
The direction, performances, and storytelling stand out. The plot is layered and rewards full attention.
Standout cinematography, editing, and visual style
A distinctive visual signature.
Look and sound: the cinematography, editing, and visual style stand out.
Based on the GoodWatch fingerprint: our scores for 70+ attributes of every movie. Select a row to see all of them.
Ever wanted to be someone else? Now you can.
Overall: Similar vibe.
Quick answers from GoodWatch data.
Being John Malkovich is included with a subscription to Amazon Prime Video and Amazon Prime Video with Ads in the United States. You can also rent or buy it from Apple TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, and Google Play Movies. All links in Where to Watch go to these licensed services.
Yes. It's widely acclaimed, with a GoodWatch score of 86/100 (IMDb 7.7, Rotten Tomatoes 94%, and Metacritic 90). The GoodWatch score combines critic and audience ratings.
It's rated R in the United States. Content advisories: sexual content and strong language.
1 h 53 min
Being John Malkovich runs 1 h 53 min.
Not quite. Critics rate Being John Malkovich higher (92) than audiences (82). It may be more rewarding than it is crowd-pleasing.
Roughly broke even. It cost about $13 million to make and earned $23 million worldwide, 1.8 times its budget.
It was made in English, with some French. Produced in United States.
+77GoodWatch finds legal streaming, rental, or purchase options for Being John Malkovich in 91 countries. Pick any of them in Where to Watch to see the local services.
TV Tropes lists 67 storytelling tropes for Being John Malkovich, including Surreal Horror, Parasitic Immortality, Foreshadowing.
7.7
