Adaptation.
Charlie Kaufman is a confused L.A. screenwriter overwhelmed by feelings of inadequacy, sexual frustration, self-loathing, and by the screenwriting ambitions of his freeloading twin brother Donald. While struggling to adapt "The Orchid Thief," by Susan Orlean, Kaufman's life spins from pathetic to bizarre. The lives of Kaufman and Orlean's book become strangely intertwined as each one's search for passion collides with the other's.
Critics Sentiment
Donald's cliched thriller script sells for millions
Brothers hide in swamp and resolve their differences
The film's shift from meta-comedy to violent thriller in the final act, dropping from thoughtful character study to formulaic action.
Critics praised Adaptation's brilliant first two acts for their clever meta-commentary and Cage's dual performance, but many felt the violent thriller climax undermined the film's earlier intellectual strengths. The film succeeded as an original, thought-provoking examination of the creative process, though its commitment to genre conventions in the finale divided audiences between those who saw it as intentional satire and those who felt it was a creative misstep.
Full cast
Showing 20 of 39
Nicolas Cage
Charlie Kaufman / Donald Kaufman
Meryl Streep
Susan Orlean
Chris Cooper
John Laroche
Tilda Swinton
Valerie Thomas
Jay Tavare
Matthew Osceola
Litefoot
Russell
Roger Willie
Randy
Jim Beaver
Ranger Tony
Cara Seymour
Amelia Kavan
Doug Jones
Augustus Margary
Gary Farmer
Buster Baxley
Peter Jason
Defense Attorney
Gregory Itzin
Prosecutor
Curtis Hanson
Orlean's Husband
Agnes NaDene Baddoo
Orlean Dinner Guest
Paul Fortune
Orlean Dinner Guest
Paul Jasmin
Orlean Dinner Guest
Lisa Love
Orlean Dinner Guest
Wendy Mogel
Orlean Dinner Guest
David O. Russell
Orlean Dinner Guest
Crew
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