Alternate Takes 11.14.09: John Cusack

Posted by Shawn S. Lealos on 11.14.2009

With the release of 2012, Alternate Takes looks at the films of the movie's star John Cusack



Welcome to Week 77 of Alternate Takes. I am your host Shawn S. Lealos and you have now entered my world.

This weekend brings 2012, the latest disaster movie from Roland Emmerich (Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow). The movie is a giant load of destruction with the world being completely demolished while one man tries to rescue his ex-wife and two children, despite everyone around them dying in earthquakes, floods, fires, explosions, and tidal waves. Somehow, while everyone in the world dies, except those with a lot of money who can buy their way onto a group of arks, this man is able to drive a car and an RV through the devestation and eventually end up on a plane, escaping the carnage while the rest of the world dies around him. It is ridiculous and stupid and can only be enjoyed with a fifth of Jack Daniels in a theater full of screaming teenagers. If you want a decent movie, you will not find one here.

However, there is one thing in the movie worth mentioning. Despite the ignorant story, horrendous dialogue and lack of any character you can really care about, there are a couple of actors here giving it their best. The first is Chiwetel Ejiofor and the second is the subject of this week's Alternate Takes: John Cusack.

5. CON AIR (1997) Directed by Simon West Written by Scott Rosenberg Cast: Nicolas Cage, John Cusack, John Malkovich, Ving Rhames, Mykelti Williamson, Nick Chinlund, Steve Buscemi, Dave Chappelle, Danny Trejo Even though Con Air seems like a "Michael Bay movie", Bay had nothing to do with it but Jerry Bruckheimer produced it, which explains a lot. Along with The Rock and Face/Off, this is also part of Nic Cage's attempt to become an action star. While he fell off the action radar a bit, partially because of critic's disdain for his overacting, I loved all three of these movies. While I don't like Con Air as much as the other two, it is still a great, fun action movie with some fantastic performances. Some great actors receive time here to stretch their personal love for over-acting. Cage is Cameron Poe, a man who served his last day in prison for killing a man while defending his wife and unborn child. Unfortunately, when travelling home, he ends up on a plane with some of the "worst of the worst" as they are being transferred to a Louisiana "Supermax" penitentiary. When the prisoners attempt an escape, they successfully take over the plane and the only person who can stop them is Cameron. The prisoners include amazing performances by John Malkovich (Cyrus the Virus, a genius murderer), Ving Rhames ("Diamond Dog" Jones, a black militant leader), Danny Trejo (Johnny 23, a serial rapist), M.C. Gainey (Swamp Thing, a drug smuggler and Vietnam vet), Dave Chapelle (Pinball Parker, drug addict and arsinist), and Steve Buscemi (The Marietta Mangler, a soft spoken serial killer and ironically the most dangerous of them all). To ground these over-the-top characters is John Cusack, the chief U.S. Marshall working with Cameron from the ground. I have said that Cusack makes almost any movie he touches better and this is the case here, helping to keep the movie from flying off the rails to absurdity. The movie is over-the-top and contains everything film snobs hate. But I love every minute of it. It was the greatest three year stretch (‘95-‘97) of Cage's career (starting with Leaving Las Vegas and ending with Face/Off. It is also the best movie of director West's career and proof that John Cusack can do just about anything.

4. BEING JOHN MALKOVICH (1999) Directed by Spike Jonze Written by Charlie Kaufman Cast: John Cusack, Cameron Diaz, Catherine Keener, John Malkovich This is the second movie in a row on this list that stars both John Cusack and John Malkovich and the two movies could not be more different. That is because Con Air is a Bruckheimer production while Being John Malkovich is a Charlie Kauffman/Spike Jonze creation. I say creation because Charlie Kauffman does not make Hollywood movies and his scripts are as hard to comprehend as anything you will ever read. He is responsible for one of my favorite movies ever in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind while Spike Jonze continues to make groundbreaking, thought provoking films like Adaptation and Where the Wild Things Are. The movie is unique, strange and wholly original. Cusack plays Craig, an unemployed puppeteer married to Lotte (Cameron Diaz). He goes to interview for a job on the 7 ½ floor of the Mertin Flammer Building, gets the job and eventually finds a portal in his office that leads into the body of John Malkovich. The person then lives life through the eyes of Malkovich, but Craig uses his puppeteer skills to eventually learn to control Malkovich. He uses the actor to try to win over the affections of a coworker named Maxine (Catherine Keener) and to reveal any more would spoil the movie if you haven't seen it. Needless to say, Being John Malkovich is a surprising movie that never goes where you expect and has an ending that is a natural progression but will leave your jaw dropped to the floor. John Cusack takes his talents to this smaller, independent project that is more an art film than a mainstream project. Regardless of its quirky nature, this is a movie worth seeking out and pays off with repeated viewings.

3. 1408 (2007) Directed by Mikael Håfström Written by Matt Greenberg, Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski based on the short story by Stephen King Cast: John Cusack, Samuel L. Jackson, Mary McCormack, Tony Shalhoub, Len Cariou, Jasmine Jessica Anthony Stephen King adaptations have always gotten a tough break from critics and fans alike. For every The Shining, there is a Stephen King's The Shining. While Maximum Overdrive is dumb fun, its remake Trucks is just dumb. The best King adaptations are usually the non-horror efforts like Shawshank Redemption and Stand by Me. However, current films have been kind to the work of the horror master. Between The Mist and 1408, King has some adaptations that are not only great horror films but great films in general. 1408 stars John Cusack as author Mike Enslin, who writes about haunted places although he doesn't believe in the supernatural at all. There is something in his psyche that wants to believe there is something, anything, out there but he has never found anything giving warrant to the hyperbole that surrounds the hotels, graveyards and houses he has come across. This all changes when he learns about a hotel in New York called the Dolphin Hotel that has a mysterious room number 1408. Enslin notes the numbers add up to 13 and when he sees there is no thirteenth floor in the hotel (meaning the 14th floor is the 13th), he sees this is just another gimmicky place looking for attention. However, he is surprised when the hotel manager (Sam Jackson) does not want Mike to stay there. He initially refuses but, when Mike threatens a lawsuit, lowers himself to bribery. Mike has none of it and demands to stay there. It is the biggest mistake he ever made. The movie never reaches the level of King's other hotel ghost story, The Shining, but it delivers the creepy, atmospheric horror of the best haunted house stories. The main sticking point is the film is occupied mostly by only one character and they couldn't have found anyone better than Cusack for the role. His character is a man whose daughter died and he lives each and every day tormenting himself over this tragedy. The room of 1408, which Jackson's character calls an "evil fucking room", manipulates Mike's depression over his loss and drives him to the edge. It is a great supernatural ghost story and Cusack brings his A-game to make the movie a truly enjoyable horror film. There are two versions of this movie, the theatrical version and the director's cut with a completely different ending. Director Mikael Håfström says the original ending was changed because test audiences disliked the "downer" ending but I prefer the less optimistic ending. It is not the "bad" ending that some claim, as Sam Jackson's character says Mike did something real good thing by (possibly) ending the threat. I am not always in the mood for completely happy endings in horror movies and felt the tacked on "happy end" in the theatrical cut brought the film down a notch. The alternate ending makes it a fantastic horror film, from start to finish.

2. SAY ANYTHING (1989) Directed by Cameron Crowe Written by Cameron Crowe Cast: John Cusack, Ione Skye, John Mahoney, Lili Taylor, Joan Cusack I find it interesting that in the week I planned on doing a John Cusack Alternate Takes, I read news that a mob of young men, all dressed in trench coats and white t-shirts walked down the streets of New York City, holding boom boxes over their heads playing Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes." It shows how important Say Anything... was for an entire generation of men. Cameron Crowe's Say Anything... was one of the first movies I saw in a theater, having won passes through a local radio station. What played out was something that struck home to me, nineteen-years old at the time. Cusack was not like other romantic comedy leads. He was more like me, more like an average normal guy, with hang-ups and aspirations and still looking for his way in life. It is Cusack's performance that makes the boom box scene, the ultimate in cheese, work so well and resonates even today, twenty years later. The movie made Cameron Crowe a sought after director and transformed John Cusack from a supporting actor into a leading man. Unlike other romantic leading men of the time such as Richard Gere, Cusack appeals to a wider variety of people. From women to men to teenagers, everyone can relate to John Cusack and I, for one, could completely relate to Lloyd Dobler.

1. HIGH FIDELITY (2000) Directed by Stephen Frears Written by D.V. DeVincentis, Steve Pink, John Cusack and Scott Rosenberg based on the novel by Nick Hornby Cast: John Cusack, Iben Hjejle, Todd Louiso, Jack Black, Lisa Bonet, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Joan Cusack, Tim Robbins While many people might put Say Anything... in the number one spot, High Fidelity always holds a special place in my heart. It is a script that would normally be rejected instantly by most studios. The lead actor breaks the fourth wall and talks to the audience throughout the entire movie. Beginning screenwriters are told to avoid voice over dialogue and this movie uses it from start to finish. John Cusack is Rob Gordon, an owner of a record store who decides to look up his five greatest heartbreaks to see why he can't make a relationship work. Among the actresses playing his ex-girlfriends is Catherine Zeta Jones and his journey will help him understand why he is so reluctant to make his relationship with current girlfriend Laura (Iben Hjejle) work. The dialogue from Rob is brilliant, based on the source novel by Nick Hornby (About a Boy, Fever Pitch). While the original novel's setting is London, the movie moves to Chicago and centers around the alternative music scene of the day. There are a number of great moments, including "Top 5" lists made by Rob and his employees Dick (Todd Louiso) and Barry (Jack Black). The soundtrack is amazing with songs by The Kinks, The Velvet Underground, Bob Dylan, Elvis Costello and Stereolab. There is also a great scene where Rob gets advice from Bruce Springsteen in a dream. The movie is also proof John Cusack can make anyone, anytime relate with him. Whether he is in an action movie, romantic comedy, horror flick, Indie, or a mainstream hit like High Fidelity, John Cusack can bring it to every role. He has developed into an actor who can bring critical attention to any movie just by signing up for it. There are many movies not mentioned here: Runaway Jury, Identity, America's Sweethearts, Grosse Point Blank, The Grifters, Sixteen Candles, Eight Men Out, all movies that are as different from one another as oil and water. Yet, Cusack brings his talents to each of them and helps them rise above the level they would have reached without him. Yet with every quality performance, High Fidelity remains his benchmark and the best John Cusack film of them all - so far.

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