Human Nature (2002)

A deceased behavioural scientist waiting to enter heaven, a woman with body hair issues and a man raised as an ape each tell separate panels how their lives came to overlap in this offbeat comedy written by Charlie Kaufman and directed by Michel Gondry - the team behind 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind'. The drama here is not as touching as in their latter collaboration, but the comedy side of 'Human Nature' is just as quirky with eccentricities ranging from laboratory mice who have been taught how to use cutlery to Rhys Ifans mixing up dining manners with his baser human urges. The title of the film is somewhat ironic as the film explores the effects of conditioning - as well as the side effects of repressing what comes naturally. It is not an entirely realistic story as the scientist, played by Tim Robbins, kidnaps a feral Rhys Ifans, found in the woods, and raises him in a glass cage in his laboratory like a guinea pig, but then again, from the gigantic illuminated signs that Robbins uses to teach him how to talk to politely (!) to the somewhat miniature furniture that he gradually crowds his glass cage with, outrageousness seems to be what Kaufman and Gondry are most acutely interested in. Plus, of course, prodding questions of just how much sense conditioning makes and whether we are in life ultimately driven by sexual desires above all else.

Weird comedy about a hairy woman, a man who has lived in the jungles like Tarzan, a scientist who is not endowed like most men, and his over-sexed assistant. With the notable exception of the terrific "Being John Malchovich," Writer Kaufman's comedies tend to start out with intriguing premises but run out of steam long before the movie is over. And so it goes with this one, rambling about with an occasional chuckle (Robbins visiting his parents and noticing a little boy at the dinner table), but unable to sustain interest over the long haul. Otto is alluring as a scientist; Arquette with her body covered with hair is not.

This film really looks at the struggle of one's self to either adapt to society's standards and thrive in the modern world or indulge in the primal urges of our instincts and primitive emotions, but from a point of view so as to not put the viewer off with its message. The whimsical method of the storytelling in the movie combines a subtle, almost childish sense of humor with an underlying angst that is almost too faded to notice. If you enjoyed childhood tales like Jack and the Beanstalk, this modernized fairy-tale will appeal to your inner child, but make sure you don't overlook the underlying message, or you might miss what makes this flick deserve a second look from anyone tired of the "same old same old".

Looking back on it, "Human Nature" sort of reminds me of "I Shot Andy Warhol", the way we slowly but surely get exposed to a gritty (but somewhat funny) topic. In this case, a man (Rhys Ifans) raised in the wild is getting interviewed by a congressional committee about why he murdered a scientist (Tim Robbins). But overall, the movie poses the question of what separates humans from animals. And after everything that the movie shows, you'll probably agree with what Ifans's character says about everything. As for Robbins's character's setting, it definitely looks like something that would please Jean-Paul Sartre. This movie's probably not for everyone, but I think that it's worth seeing. Also starring Patricia Arquette, Hilary Duff, Peter Dinklage, Mary Kay Place and Robert Forster.Yeah, words are kinda evil...