Human Nature

Possibly Charlie Kaufman's strangest film and that's certainly saying something isn't it? Kind of boorish and one-joke, but visually and textually there's a lot here to chew on.

Didn't resonate as profoundly as Kaufman's other scripts have but it's still a decent movie with some awesome scenes. The casting was bad and it never seems to come together throughout. I'm just gonna think of it as a warm up for what was to come.

This movie looks really stupid from the beginning and especially when you read the description but its actually an intelligent story that shows how silly we are as humans

Charlie Kaufman remains an excellent story teller on the level of Vonnegut as he introduces slight sci-fi elements into his tales and spins them into morality plays on existence and how we should deal with such a thing. Human nature might be the weakest of his films, but it still is very funny and proves to be a great stepping stone for this screenwriters career. Good performances.

Somewhat unpolished but it has Kaufman's sensibilities and some creativity both thematic and visual.

It's just a bit off. I mean if it was in the fridge, two days past its used-by date, and I was really hungry then I'd probably go for it again and not feel too poorly.

My Hair Lady.

Kaufman's weakest.

The film starts off well enough but in the end, Gondry's terrific whimsical, off-beat style is ill-suited for this cynical story. Still, it is not terrible film.

Kind of a horrible mess of a movie. It's unique but not really in a good way. The only Kaufman movie I don't like.

An odd little film that shows us two genuine artists--Gondry and Kaufman--working together in a creative fashion. Its not a great film, but it has a lot of good stuff in it, and for those interested in the themes both of them explore in other works, there are definitely some resonances here.

Casting was interesting but acting not always. Cartoonish outlook works fine, except some actors tried to be too funny, like Robert Forster (blame director). I prob. did not get the point of the story because the end really sucks. Film declares, "Wild animals are okay... as long as they'll be locked up in zoo." As a matter of fact they did in the movie. Even if they were released to nature, they wanted back to civilization. Was it sarcasm against human nature? Director fails to say it.

funn, but uneven and ends in a disappointing way

I'm an Ape ooga booga

A film written by Charlie Kaufman and directed by Michel Gondry...why did it take me so long to watch this? Human Nature is a subtly funny movie, with some great bits of production design. Robbins, Arquette, and Ifans are all great. I just don't understand Otto's character. She's not good looking enough to be some sort of irresistible love interest, and the whole fake French thing seemed pointless. But hey, aside from also being a tad dated, it's actually a surprisingly great movie.

A zany romp through some centuries-long debates about the influence of civilization on the human animal. Gondry and Kaufman aren't at top form, but there's still plenty to love if you don't take it too seriously.

Basically the same thematic problems from Being John Malkovich rebranded. Lack of unnecessary scifi elements helps massively but the issue of not having any coherent message is still present.

Really uneven

(...)Michel Gondrys Debütfilm (nach dem Drehbuch von Charlie Kaufman) zeigt drei Charaktere im Ringen um die eigene Sexualität. Lila (Patricia Arquette) floh in die Wälder, versteckte sich dort, nachdem ihr Körper einen ungewöhnlichen Haarwuchs zeigte: Lila ist über und über mit Pelz bedeckt. Sie wurde zu einer Autorin, die das Leben eines Einsiedlers führt. Letztlich zog es sie aber zurück in die Zivilisation. Warum? Weil ihre Sex-Triebe ihr keine Ruhe mehr liessen!(...)

At times interesting, but didn't quite fit together. I didn't like the interview scheme and wasn't one of Tim Robbins best performances, the characters weren't believable, Kaufman's characters are generally weird, but they are consistent trough his films, not in this case.

Ah, the eternal question - did humans make mistake by evolving? Would not it be better to live in a moment, free from all the sufferings the mind brings? After all, isn't intellect just a tool to achieve personal ends and hurt each other in sophisticated ways? Most obscure film Kaufman wrote, ruined by cartoonish direction, bad CGI and silly humor.

when someone asks you the difference between a movie and a film, you can answer that eternal sunshine is a movie, but human nature is totally a film.

Low-key, very offbeat philosophical exercise is in the same vein as Kaufman's MALKOVICH and ADAPTATION but lacks the frenetic energy and visual flair of Spike Jonze. As it is, Gondry does a creditable job of bringing Kaufman's bizarre sensibilities to the screen, and he is well served by a good cast, with Forster and Place especially amusing as Robbins' disciplinarian parents. Peters out somewhat along the way, but remains consistently enjoyable.

We will pass a legislation to address this problem ...

61.500

Overall, one of the weaker works of Kaufmans's writing but it was fun and clever enough to pass as a introspective film, but it only did scantily. It didn't start as a very serious film and didn't end on a serious note, but the subject of the instinctual "noble savage" and our utterly truncated views towards nature are a matter that is anything but a joke. However, this film was directed towards the masses and it is a comical approach to address these issues. Maria Otto was smokin' hot.

"Human Nature" is an interesting and pleasant watch. The acting is fine (Rhys Ifans especially is very good) and there are some memorable moments, but at times it gets a bit too bizarre for its own good.

Cynical story about human nature. The description isn't very attractive and the story isn't as impressive as Kaufman's other work, but it's worth watching! Acting and set designs could have been a lot better though.

Whilst this is often clever and funny, it has a feeling of artifice which alienates you from really feeling for the characters - the acting in particular verges on the farcical at times, and the eden scenes are obviously shot on a set. Ifans and Otto are great.

Underrated gem.

I guess not everything Charlie Kaufman writes in genius. While this one is odd, it's rarely funny and is thematically laborious. It does feature a naked hairy Patricia Arquette though.

I expected more from a Kaufman / Gondry movie

t got many interesting ideas, stuffed with symbols and self humor. It deals withthe nature/nurture dilemma, but in some point become sarcastic about the dilemma itself.

Patricia Arquette will never look the same.

A fascinating screenplay and competent direction is enough to pull this film through poor acting performances. A fun film that could have had some deeper critical implications but faltered at the ending. Overall, the film has moments of hilarity and is generally provocative, but doesn't capitalize on its potential.

The river sequence alone makes this worth watching.

Weird.

A generally entertaining and inventive, if not particularly involving, examination of the concept of sublimation.

Such...horrible...acting...

A bizarre exercise, it never quite feels as if it fits within the realm of Kaufman or Gondry respectively. A premise with potential evolves into a shockingly unremarkable film.

Civilization and its Discontents redux. An underappreciated film that humorously illustrates man's instinctual desires pitted against societies repressive conformity. Nevertheless it gets wrap up in the satire and tries tirelessly to redeem itself from mess it created. The film lacks the witty flare and underlying sarcasm of his previous works. Robbins and Arquette, however, are marvelously funny at points and save the film all together from destructing itself, as perhaps we would???

Kaufman's most cynical and also most broadly satirical script, perhaps somewhat mishandled by Gondry in emphasizing the whimsy and farce and unfortunately downplaying the pathos and sadness underlying all of Kaufman's work (interestingly Gondry would take almost the exact opposite approach in Eternal Sunshine).

The clever premise is used to unrelentingly prod at many aspects of humanity and civilization. Good performances all around, particularly Rhys Ifans and Patricia Arquette. Lots of laughs, and good grist for conversation.

An underrated gem!

+ highly recommended

I would like to have Rhys Ifans' children. Many of them. Over and over again. Grrrrrr.

Just OK stuff from Charlie Kaufman. Nothing comes together though there are interesting moments.

This film shattered my reverent image of Charlie Kaufman, who I previously forgave for spending two hours or so with unlikeable, selfish grotesques only to arbitrarily punish and reward them at the end. It's hard to believe that this is the director/writer pairing responsible for the far superior "Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind".

Witty, Funny and very clever. Would have gotten a MUCH higher score if not for Patricia Arquette's atrocious acting.

This cliche of a script by Charlie Kaufman preaches the same old romantic sermon on how civilization is icky, and shares with Rousseau a dubious adoration of the 'noble' savage. Kaufman's characters, here as always, are cardboard cutouts.

The only misstep yet in the career of Charlie Kaufman. Too smart for it's own good and played by a cast that's not in on the joke, save for a game Miranda Otto.

Best seen as a good Kaufman warm-up for Gondry.