Written by Charlie Kaufman

[x1onexwo1fx]

haven't seen any of these? get on it!

[x1onexwo1fx]

oh crap, i just realized, eternal sunshine is probably going to win this just because it's the most popular/accessible/whatever. pointless poll is pointless.

[Star Slight]

I still really need to see Eternal Sunshine, but I went with Adaptation out of the rest

[x1onexwo1fx]

I still really need to see Eternal Sunshine, but I went with Adaptation out of the rest

i just saw adaptation about a week ago. loved it. still went with synecdoche. haven't seen human nature or confessions.

eternal sunshine is actually a really good movie, and michel gondry did an amazing job. i just like the other movies more.

[xapplexpiex]

Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind is the only one of these I've seen. Someone told me I should check out Being John Malkovich though. I think I will.

[xapplexpiex]

oh crap, i just realized, eternal sunshine is probably going to win this just because it's the most popular/accessible/whatever. pointless poll is pointless.
Exactly. It's the one movie people claim to love just for indie cred. I'm not saying it's bad (I love it), but it is on a lot of favorites lists.

[anamericangod]

Eternal Sunshine is a great movie and by far the most popular, but I voted for Synecdoche, New York. Phillip Seymour Hoffman is absolutely remarkable in it. It's difficult to describe that movie and all the emotions it conjures up.

[Neo Cassady]

Synecdoche is high on my Netflix queue. I'll probably watch it next week sometime. For now, though, Eternal Sunshine is the only one I've seen.

[Goat01]

Synecdoche is amazing.

[peter.faille.]

i might be missing the point here, but i voted for "eternal sunshine..." only because it's a known source of inspiration for anthony green/circa survive... and for that, i'm deeply thankful

[IceAge/HeatWave]

i've only seen synecdoche and ESOTSM. i don't think they are nearly as good or have as "deep" of a meaning as people seem to think they do. i feel like they are movies i'm supposed to like.

i still wanna check out john malkovich and adaptation though. for now, i'm not voting.

[notoaststereo]

probably one of the hardest polls ive seen on this site.

for me:

Synecdoche, New York
Adaptation
Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind
Being John Malcovich
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
Human Nature

[justlikehoney]

Everything he does with Spike Jonze is wonderful.

[lonelysuperstar]

oh crap, i just realized, eternal sunshine is probably going to win this just because it's the most popular/accessible/whatever. pointless poll is pointless.
I've seen all of these films (bar one) and still voted eternal sunshine. It just resonated with me most. All his scripts are incredible though. I'm yet to see something with his name attached to it that isn't brilliant.

[bard]

1. adaptation
2. synecdoche, new york
3. eternal sunshine of the spotless mind
4. being john malkovich
5. confessions of a dangerous mind

i still need to see human nature

[lonelysuperstar]

My order is as follows:

1. Eternal Sunshine Of the Spotless Mind
2. Synecdoche, New York
3. Being John Malkovich
4. Adaptation
5. Human Nature

I'm yet to see Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

[xabesapienx]

Synecdoche is amazing.


I second this statement. Charlie Kauffman can do now wrong. I love all his movies

[x1onexwo1fx]

I've seen all of these films (bar one) and still voted eternal sunshine. It just resonated with me most. All his scripts are incredible though. I'm yet to see something with his name attached to it that isn't brilliant.

understandable. i would've said the same thing except i relate more with synecdoche, as sad as that sounds.

[Goat01]

I second this statement. Charlie Kauffman can do now wrong. I love all his movies

Plus, it's based in my city, I have bias.

[lonelysuperstar]

understandable. i would've said the same thing except i relate more with synecdoche, as sad as that sounds.
Yeah, that does sound a little depressing haha. Synecdoche would have been my next vote.

[vivatoto56]

Gotta go with Adaptation. Every single awful commercial I see for a new Nicholas Cage movie I take a deep breath and say "He was in Adaptation. . . He was in Adaptation. . ."

[x1onexwo1fx]

Gotta go with Adaptation. Every single awful commercial I see for a new Nicholas Cage movie I take a deep breath and say "He was in Adaptation. . . He was in Adaptation. . ."

he was great in adaptation. then i saw him in kick-ass...

[vivatoto56]

he was great in adaptation. then i saw him in kick-ass...

Really?! Wasn't good? I heard good things about that movie.

[x1onexwo1fx]

Really?! Wasn't good? I heard good things about that movie.

nonono, the movie was great. cage wasn't.

[vivatoto56]

nonono, the movie was great. cage wasn't.

Fair enough. Hopefully he doesn't have a large part.

[AussieBoy]

adaptatation
then malkovich
then eternal sunshine

havnt seen rest

[zachff]

Johnny Malko

still have never seen Eternal Sunshine, the hype ruined it for me

[mantipede]

oh crap, i just realized, eternal sunshine is probably going to win this just because it's the most popular/accessible/whatever. pointless poll is pointless.

This is very true :(

And that makes me sad because I think that, while Eternal Sunshine is a great movie, everything else Kaufman has written is better. Adaptation is one of my favorite movies period, Synecdoche blew my goddamned mind and Confessions of a Dangerous Mind is utterly brilliant. E.S. will win this poll because most people have only seen that but should totally branch out.


I'm yet to see Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

I would definitely recommend picking this up. Rockwell and Clooney are just phenomenal. The book it was based off of was amazing, too.

[lonelysuperstar]

This is very true :(

And that makes me sad because I think that, while Eternal Sunshine is a great movie, everything else Kaufman has written is better. Adaptation is one of my favorite movies period, Synecdoche blew my goddamned mind and Confessions of a Dangerous Mind is utterly brilliant. E.S. will win this poll because most people have only seen that but should totally branch out.


True. But not only that - people shouldn't vote on a poll unless they're familiar with at least half (preferably all) of what's being put to the test.

[bowl of oranges]

Only one I haven't seen of those is Human Nature, gotta check that out.
With that being said though, Eternal Sunshine is my favorite movie ever, so that takes the cake for me.
Synecdoche, close close second.

[x1onexwo1fx]

True. But not only that - people shouldn't vote on a poll unless they're familiar with at least half (preferably all) of what's being put to the test.

you can't really enforce that, though.

well, i guess you can put in the poll question "vote only if you've seen >1/2 of the choices"

[Brand-new-123]

I don't really know how I feel about Synecdoche. It was a great movie, but I just don't know if I enjoyed it or not. I definitely enjoyed Being John Malkovich the most out of his movies though.

[adamKS]

all of these movies are remarkable and groundbreaking. here's my order:
1. eternal sunshine (a movie that has every emotion, and you experience all of these while watching along with poignant insights into life and relationships. this movie hits me so hard in every aspect, this movie seems like my life)
2. being john malkovich (this movie hit me in a weird way the first time i saw it. it's equally and incredibly quirky, sad, and surrreal. this movie is definitely a mindtrip)
3. adaptation (i love the character of charlie kaufman played by nicolas cage. he does an amazing job and this is story telling at its finest. this movie is full of so much life and hits hard again on, surprise. . . .relationships.
4. synedoche, new york (incredibly unique movie and great directorial debut by kaufman. its a great movie but always leaves me feeling bummed out. a very complex movie with layers upon layers but its too depressing/ugly. . . .there's no hope in it. however, i get it that that's the point of the movie but i like my depressing, sad movies to have at least a little hope or glimmer of light)
5. confessions of a dangerous mind (probably the most surreal and best crime drama/thriller i've seen. sam rockwell is amazing in this one)

6. human nature - it's good, but not up to par with the rest of these movies.

[x1onexwo1fx]

i like my depressing, sad movies to have at least a little hope or glimmer of light

understandable. however, i think i like synecdoche (and requiem for a dream) because they aren't hopeful. i guess that just means i'm a depressing person, then. i just can't think of any other movies that didn't have some glimmer of light, so i found those movies to be... i don't know, refreshing.

[lonelysuperstar]

There are just some scenes of Eternal Sunshine that completely floor me every time I see them. The last time I watched it I was replaying one or two scenes in my head for about 2-3 weeks afterwards. My favourite scene is the one in the library where this conversation takes place:

Clementine (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000701/): Hi. Didn't figure you'd show your face around me again. I guess I thought you were... humiliated. You did run away, after all.
Joel (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000120/): I just needed to see you.
Clementine (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000701/): Yeah?
Joel (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000120/): I'd like to, um... take you out, or something.
Clementine (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000701/): You're married.
Joel (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000120/): Not yet, not married. No, I'm not married.
Clementine (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000701/): Look man, I'm telling you right off the bat, I'm high-maintainance, so... I'm not gonna tip-toe around your marriage, or whatever it is you've got goin' there. If you wanna be with me, you're with me.
Joel (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000120/): Okay.
Clementine (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000701/): Too many guys think I'm a concept, or I complete them, or I'm gonna make them alive. But I'm just a fucked-up girl who's lookin' for my own piece of mind; don't assign me yours.
Joel (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000120/): I remember that speech really well.
Clementine (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000701/): I had you pegged, didn't I?
Joel (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000120/): You had the whole human race pegged.
Clementine (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000701/): Hmm. Probably.
Joel (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000120/): I still thought you were gonna save my life... even after that.
Clementine (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000701/): Ohhh... I know.

And in the background all of the books are losing their colour. It's fantastic.

[wall e]

BJM is so out there. Watch it.

[mjr20]

I love his style and how he incorporates what I think is Social Anxiety Disorder into his movies, because only someone with social anxiety can come up with the stuff he writes. He is probably my favorite writer, I just recently saw Adaptation.(which has a period at the end) and it was just as good as BJM and ETOTSM

[Indoor Living]

Eternal Sunshine or Synecdoche. Since I most recently watch Synecdoche, though, I'm going with that. Such an amazing film.

[Radiology]

1: Eternal Sunshine, not because of that "indie cred" bullshit. Saying that people vote for that movie just to be more "indie" is ridiculous. It's simply the best movie Kaufman has written, and is one of the best (if not THE best) movies of the past decade. The writing was incredible Michel Gondry at the director's helm did a fantastic job of capturing the vision of the script, and the acting on the cast's part was flawless. If anything in not acknowledging that this is the best movie by Kaufman, to just to go against the grain, is attempting to gain more "indie-cred".

2: Adaptation, a very clever, post-modern take on popular cinema. In-genius idea and a great cast to match it. However, it just doesn't have the essence that Sunshine has.

3: Being John Malkovich

I haven't seen Confessions of a Dangerous Mind or Human Nature and I just thought Synecdoche was terrible. Kaufman had some great ideas for sure, but it shows that he can't stand on his own. He definitely can not direct, but also as evidence from Spike Jonze's part as well as Michel Gondry's that all three men work better when they collaborate rather than working solo as all the projects they've done on their own haven't lived up to the three movies listed above.

[x1onexwo1fx]

1: Eternal Sunshine, not because of that "indie cred" bullshit. Saying that people vote for that movie just to be more "indie" is ridiculous. It's simply the best movie Kaufman has written, and is one of the best (if not THE best) movies of the past decade. The writing was incredible Michel Gondry at the director's helm did a fantastic job of capturing the vision of the script, and the acting on the cast's part was flawless. If anything in not acknowledging that this is the best movie by Kaufman, to just to go against the grain, is attempting to gain more "indie-cred".

2: Adaptation, a very clever, post-modern take on popular cinema. In-genius idea and a great cast to match it. However, it just doesn't have the essence that Sunshine has.

3: Being John Malkovich

I haven't seen Confessions of a Dangerous Mind or Human Nature and I just thought Synecdoche was terrible. Kaufman had some great ideas for sure, but it shows that he can't stand on his own. He definitely can not direct, but also as evidence from Spike Jonze's part as well as Michel Gondry's that all three men work better when they collaborate rather than working solo as all the projects they've done on their own haven't lived up to the three movies listed above.

indie cred? watchootalkinbout? i voted synecdoche simply because i can relate to it and was touched by it the most. no going against the grain to gain more indie cred there.

[yellowhouse]

nonono, the movie was great. cage wasn't.

I dunno, his Adam West impression made me laugh.

[Radiology]

indie cred? watchootalkinbout? i voted synecdoche simply because i can relate to it and was touched by it the most. no going against the grain to gain more indie cred there.

that comment wasn't directed towards you, though synecdoche is terrible. It had so much potential, it just needed a different director. Kaufman can't direct for the life of him, he's got amazing ideas but they're so sporadic that the film lacked the narrative arc that a great film should have. If Jonze or Gondry directed it, I'm sure it would be up there with the rest of Kaufman's works.

[x1onexwo1fx]

that comment wasn't directed towards you, though synecdoche is terrible. It had so much potential, it just needed a different director. Kaufman can't direct for the life of him, he's got amazing ideas but they're so sporadic that the film lacked the narrative arc that a great film should have. If Jonze or Gondry directed it, I'm sure it would be up there with the rest of Kaufman's works.

hmm. did it ever cross your mind that as the director kaufman wanted the movie as a whole to be sporadic? now that i think of it, that's actually one of the reasons why i like it. i guess we'll have to disagree.

[I am Mick]

Eternal Sunshine. Being john Malkovich is a close second. I didn't like Synecdoche at all

[Radiology]

hmm. did it ever cross your mind that as the director kaufman wanted the movie as a whole to be sporadic? now that i think of it, that's actually one of the reasons why i like it. i guess we'll have to disagree.

Eternal Sunshine was also meant to be sporadic, but it worked because Gondry knows how to direct (but Gondry cannot write a great script on his own).

Believe me, I love Kaufman. He's my favorite script writer, but the man can't direct.

[fuxkholly]

Eternal Sunshine is a great movie and by far the most popular, but I voted for Synecdoche, New York. Phillip Seymour Hoffman is absolutely remarkable in it. It's difficult to describe that movie and all the emotions it conjures up.
Sir Hoffman, most underrated actor eva.

Still voted for Eternal Sunshine >.<

[meroki22]

I couldn't vote. I love them all.

[ImTheSheriff]

went with adaptation, because eternal sunshine is the obvious choice.

[singyoutocoma]

Only seen Eternal Sunshine and Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, and I honestly liked the latter better.

[x1onexwo1fx]

Only seen Eternal Sunshine and Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, and I honestly liked the latter better.

you're in one hell of a minority there, buddy. nothing wrong with that, of course.

[spansen]

take a guess on where i voted, going by where everyone else is voting..

[x1onexwo1fx]

it looks like the poll is giving us the finger, except the thumb is on the wrong side of the hand.

[lesterCorp.]

Sir Hoffman, most underrated actor eva.

Still voted for Eternal Sunshine >.<

Hardly underrated, I agree he is phenomenal but the Academy have realised his talent and he's always getting great roles in things.

This poll is what it's all about. Charlie Kaufman is a genius amongst morons. Synecdoche, Being John Malkovich, Eternal Sunshine and Adaptation are some of the greatest and most original films to come out in the past 15 years. I really didn't think a lot of Human Nature and was shocked to find out it came out after Malkovich, it didn't have the writing I've come to admire from Kaufman or the visionary directing Michel Gondry's so well know for. I though Confessions was alright, not great though, you can definitely tell it's not the film that Kaufman intended and Clooney changed it a lot. I just wish Kaufman had done the version of "A Scanner Darkly" that he was originally going to do until Linklater took over.

Anyway, sorry, rambling about Charlie Kaufman is a weakness of mine. I went with Synecdoche as I just don't understand how he wrote that movie, it's a piece of philosophy more than a film in a way. But PS-H is incredible and the supporting cast is insane; Samantha Morton is perfection.

[lesterCorp.]

Eternal Sunshine was also meant to be sporadic, but it worked because Gondry knows how to direct (but Gondry cannot write a great script on his own).

Believe me, I love Kaufman. He's my favorite script writer, but the man can't direct.

I'd like to know your reasons for this brash statement. As a young director/screenwriter whose seen many thousands of well directed films and cites Wes Anderson, Paul Thomas Anderson, Michel Gondry & Sam Mendes as modern influences and Orson Welles and Scorsese as classic influences, I found Kaufman's directorial debut very self-assured and impressive. It wasn't the greatest directing job but it was a solid turn.

Just want to know how you feel he can't direct at all?

Also Synecdoche isn't terrible, you mean you just didn't get it. There's literally no way you can call that movie terrible even if you didn't enjoy it.