philosophy on screen

Philosophy on Screen

There have been several representations of philosophy on screen and one particular topic that has always been of interest for filmmakers and the viewers alike is dualism. Dualism is a philosophical concept that has been posited by great thinkers of history such as Plato and Socrates. Descartes more particularly postulated his view where he holds that 'human beings are made up of two kinds of stuff or "substance"; mental or spiritual substance (minds), and physical or material substance (bodies) (Falzon 2002, p. 61)." The dualist principle has been apparent in various films and one of which can be surmised in Director Spike Jonze's 1999 film On Being John Malkovich, the story revolves around 'filing clerk Craig Schwartz (John Cusack) who finds a passageway in his office through which he can enter the mind of the actor John Malkovich; thus in the end is based on the same dualist premise (Falzon 2002, p. 62). This dualist role is evident when throughout the film, the importance of John Malkovich's memory is emphasized especially when Schwartz found out that he is able to remain in the persona of Malkovich and live the actor's life as his own. It seems that Schwartz finds his own life dull and unsuccessful that having had the chance of being John Malkovich would provide the change he needed in his life. The dualist persona becomes clear throughout the film because of Schwartz assumption of Malkovich's personality via the actor's memory. Thus, although he knows that he is still Schwartz, he is acting the life of John Malkovich with a little twist especially when he turned the actor into an accomplished puppeteer.

Dualism is further reiterated in various scenes in the film especially when Craig utters a monologue in the film: 'It raises all sorts of philosophical-type questions, you know about the nature of the self, about the existence of a soul. Am I me? Is it Malkovich...Do you see what metaphysical can of worms this portal is? (Jonze 1999; Litch 2002, p. 67)' Indeed, the monologue hits Descartes' concept of the dual nature of man on the dot especially since Craig as trying to find the differentiation between the mind / soul and the body. The important question though while watching the film -- and more than likely some viewers have ask this is 'How important is John Malkovich's memory to identifying him as John Malkovich?' The basic response to this question is that it is the central principle on the matter since without the 'memory per se' of John Malkovich, then it is not him at all but another person. As what Falzon postulated in his article on Descartes and Dualism, the author states that 'the dualist view of human beings means that it is possible for the mind to exist separately from the body (2002, p. 62)' but the persona is still that same person despite residing in another physical being. Thus, John Malkovich's mind may be transferred to Craig's body but then it is the personality of Malkovich that now resides in a different physical form. Schwartz used the memory of Malkovich to live a life he never had -- or even wanted as his old self and finds fulfillment in being John Malkovich.