Review add-on

To Matthew's review I replied: "Precisely. I felt let-down by the flimsy introduction of characters that never seemed genuinely motivated to accomplish their supposed goals. They were mired in frustration and entirely unclear on their best, or even easiest, course of action:

• Tilda Swinton's character seemed to want someone to dominate, so why would she listen to a buffoon lawyer and file for divorce to take on training Clooney when she already had Malkovich right where she wanted him. If it was money she was after, then why wasn't that made clear. She was a powerful woman putting on the show of power with the divorce, but without any real aim to it.

• Brad Pitt's character seemed to want to money, but got more adventure than he bargained for along the way, becoming the sacrificed dope. But his motivations for money were as thin and flimsy as McDormand's interest in cosmetic surgery. Had she been an aspiring bodybuilder it'd make sense -- but her low self-esteem wasn't keeping her from dating or getting laid by Clooney! Then suddenly, and oddly, her attention seemed to shift to the self-help "lose the negativity within/project a positive person on the outside". Where did that came from when she'd been so hell bent on her body issues earlier? Was she trying to channel Pitt's blithe silliness in his memory? (And did she ever even learn that he'd been killed, not just gone missing? I wanted that resolution but never got it.)

• Gym Mgr's ability to put aside his logic and responsibility by jumping into the danger and drama with petty theft was the ultimate "weak character move" for no apparent reason. God only knows how Malkovich channelled all of his anger into that face-off and the axe-down scene, but it was brutal, and I don't think that the viewers really understood what could motivate either player on that scene to end up as they did. It was baffling and should have been revealing.
  

I guess all of that just supports your thesis: the characters we like and understand, or even loathe but understand, have to be played in a way that keeps consistent with their own logic and revealed character. Actors can be typecast and writers can be expected to write a certain kind of dark comedy, but it's only dark and funny when we really know why they're doing what they're doing -- because they can't stop. Then you can watch the train wreck and laugh at how silly and strange we all are. But at least we make sense, if only to ourselves.