What a trip this movie is. And what a great performance by Nicholas Cage. He plays two characters, one a struggling screenwriter and another his twin brother, a good-for-nothing who is apparently an up-and-coming screenwriter. At the start of the movie, both brothers are losers, but Cage beautifully shows us that there can be more than one way to portray a loser while making them both heartfelt and sympathetic. Not once did I get confused about who is who, even though both characters look very much the same. Meryl Streep also gives a moving and brave performance--what else could you have expected from her?--as a successful but unhappy writer who falls in love with an eccentric orchid thief, played by Chris Cooper. But the merits of this film go beyond great acting. The script by Charlie (and Donald) Kaufman is both surprising and captivating from beginning to end. This film has been on my Netflix queue for years. I remember it being suggested to me after I gave BEING JOHN MALKOVICH 5 stars. Well, I’m also giving Spike Jonze’s ADAPTATION five stars, because isn’t just a great movie but also very inspiring.
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