When Fiction Becomes Reality for Movie Characters

By Chris Kavan - 11/04/10 at 10:48 AM CT

Sure, movies are already fictional, but some movies aren't content with one fictional world - they make their characters become lost in their own fictional worlds. It's like a movie within a movie - but it's not so hard to wrap your head around. Here are the top contenders:

1) Pleasantville - Imagine you could join the cast of your favorite television show - I mean, what would you do? For two modern teens, hopping into a "Leave It to Beaver"-esque world means introducing some edge to the picture perfect world. Yet as the literally add a little color to the seemingly perfect, innocent world things like bigotry and violence also come out. It's a nice little commentary, plus it just looks fantastic.

2) Being John Malkovich - Imagine you could inhabit the body of someone else for 15 minutes - what if that someone else was actor John Malkovich? I wonder if many buildings have 7-and-a-half floors that lead to minds of other actors and actresses? Trippy, huh? Anyway, it turns out that a lot of people would like to become Mr. Malkovich, and pay to do so, even if it means landing on the Jersey turnpike. Not technically going into fiction, but close enough.

3) Last Action Hero - Imagine you could hop into your favorite movie - maybe if you could get your hands on a shiny, magic ticket like Danny you would do just that. While the movie may have bombed, the idea is great - hop in and out of movies, talk with your film heroes, find out life on the other side isn't as perfect as imagined - oh yeah, and don't let the fictional characters get a hold of your ticket, because letting evil out spells trouble for everyone involved.

4) Stranger Than Fiction - Hearing voices in your head is never a good sign, but if you start to hear narration on everything you're doing, it may require a little digging. For Harold Crick, that's what happens and he vows to find the author that's seemingly guiding his life - towards his death - before he kicks the bucket. Hey, at least he wasn't hearing the voice of Stephen King.

5) Stay Tuned - Before you agree to free cable, make sure you know who you're dealing with. Because it's not worth saving a few bucks if it means losing your soul. Bickering husband and wife get caught in an endless array of channels that are almost like real TV channels, but with a hellish twist. While this is a pretty corny movie, once again the premise is pretty interesting. The Threes Company reference, while brief, is pretty damn funny.

Any other movies you can think of where people become trapped in their own fictional worlds or ideas? The possibilities abound!