Being Craig and Gallimard

The film, Being John Malkovich, relates to the issues of identity in obvious ways.  The character use the portals to John's mind as way to escape their own lives.  However, Craig not only uses it for this, but also for a sense of control.  When we first meet Craig, he is an unhappy puppeteer, struggling to remain relevant.  His marriage with Lottie is as unfulfilled as his puppet shows on the street corner, which end in him being assaulted.  Suddenly, when Craig find this portal, he feels a new sense of empowerment.  This change in attitude reflects the same transition Gallimard undergoes when he is promoted at work, due to his new confidence, which was gained by his relationship with song. 

Each of these characters uphold a type of masculinity that mostly equates with power over others.  It is interesting to see two characters who begin as passive people, grow into deceitful and ultimately unhappy people.  Because both of these stories take place in more recent settings than Act one of Cloud 9 and The Importance of Being Earnest, where we see more aggressive male figures, such as Clive and Algernon, it is interesting to see how the characters all end in the same place: unfulfilled.  So, the question is, is the modern day man, even though more passive with his need for control, just as damaging as an aggressive type from earlier times?