I have to say, there are some films that intrude on your existence – they get just a little too close and cut a little too deep, and perhaps open a portal into another dimension by the post-viewing. Charlie Kaufman is known for doing this sort of metaphysical gymnastics with his films. Adaptation, although cutting deeply into the human condition – especially that of a writer – does not cross any lines that made this viewer feel exposed.
I related, I liked it, laughed, and felt sore at all the right moments. There is a trend, which has been going on for the past couple of decades in cinema, in which films have lost their souls at the expense of being a commercial success. The main character in this film, Charlie Kaufman (based on the screenplay writer of the film) played by Nicholas Cage, grapples with this dilemma – although his struggle is more of an inner struggle of originality. This film, along with other Charlie Kaufman films such as Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and Being John Malcokovich, are orginal screenplays to the extent that it is parodied in this film. And these films do have souls.
I will state here: Nicholas Cage is the greatest for a reason. The Kaufman brothers – Charlie (the unique self-critical one) and Donald (the rambunctious warm-hearted one) – both played by Nicholas Cage, show the beautiful yet crippling conflict of being a writer. I deeply resonated with both characters being Ben Bon and Ben Bonkoske myself, and it is commented in the film about how multi-personalities in films are one of the most overused tropes in writing, but, such is life. Although Donald Kaufman is considered oblivious compared to Charlie, it is shown that there is an envy for that state of mind. It is also shown that the carefree, open mindedness which comes from not being pretentious, paves way for the true beautiful verses of life. In this film, the verse is, “You are what you love, not what loves you.”
I think that the title sums up the message of the film. It shows that we are meant to adapt. There is nothing wrong, or pitiful about being able to adapt to life. Meryl Streep plays a writer for the New Yorker, and although there is commentary about the unfulfilling lives of the elites, what is most compelling about her character is the question of finding meaning/passion. It seems to elude her. She can write well at the expense of human emotion. There is a reason why psychopaths are extremely successful in the world, which is why they are the second most overused trope in writing. But she undergoes change in the film. Finding passion in love and drugs fueled by her writing.
It is not a film that is meant to resolve life’s problems, nor probe them. Good art just makes us know we are less alone. And very good art like this one, shows us that we are meant to love. However it may look. If it comes from our past, if it is unsuspected, imagined, or uncomfortable beyond belief. You are to love. And life is a beautiful thing that we get to be a small part of something bigger.
Ben Bonkoske 