Being Alan Conway Being Stanley Kubrick

Here's the short version: total, unmitigated, brilliant fun from start to finish. John Malkovich as Alan Conway in Color Me Kubrick, the guy who pretended to be Kubrick in London for a number of years in the '90s (and got away with it!), is outrageously good. He plays his queenly character to the hilt. Every expression, every combination of purposely bad New York, British, and other accents that apparently Conway tried to do in earnest--all of these hit the mark. His walk, side-long gazes, flutter of those remarkable eyelashes caked with mascara--all the little touches that indeed pronounce him a Queen. In fact, Malkovich is so at home with this persona, you wonder. . . And wait until you see him in his fuzzy coat and gypsy scarf, a striking image reminiscent of Edie Beale in Grey Gardens, and only one of a rich assemblage of fashion statements he parades around in during the course of the film.

The story is quite fantastic. Apparently Conway managed to dupe people into thinking he was Stanley Kubrick, the famous and reclusive film director. He managed to get people to pay his hotel bills, lured young boys into sexual escapades, would pretend he lived in upscale neighborhoods by having a new acquaintance meet him in front of a posh address, to name only a few of his lavish and skillfully executed ruses. He even managed to fool people who knew the actual Kubrick. One of these people was Frank Rich, then theatre critic for the New York Times. It seems that one night he and a Hollywood producer who had actually met Kubrick - fell for Conway's act. As Kubrick, Conway gained entrance to exclusive nightspots, was invited to countless parties and restaurants. And he was forever adept at not signing a check or paying a bill. And perhaps the most amazing thing is, he displayed very little knowledge of Kubrick the man, or his films.

Conway manages to entice people by portraying himself as the recognized celebrity recluse "confiding" in just them. So the recipient of his "confidential ramblings" feels special, privileged in fact, and is only too happy to pick up the bill, because 'Kubrick' seems to have forgotten to bring any cash and has also managed to leave all his credit cards on his bureau. He drops names right and left, manufactures ideas for movies he will direct, confuses actors from the past and present. All this delivered in exagerrated language, accents, and the every-so-queenly flair.

Being Stanley Kubrick, John Malkovich has achieved what I truly believe to be his best role. What could have been a slapstick misery is a remarkable achievement. You don't dislike the man, you don't pity him. You're highly entertained by him. In fact, you're enthralled by him.

This story about a man who set out to be someone he was not, who played it with all the truth of what he wanted, and who managed to pull it off--in spite of incredible odds, is a delightful sojourn into someone else's dream. And as Malkovich brings it all so delightfully to life, we play along with him, willingly.

Directed by Brian Cook, who worked with the actual Stanley Kubrick as his assistant director in many films, Color Me Kubrick, released in 2005, is a fabulous ride.

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