#MovieReview: Poor Things is unlike anything you’ve ever seen [Watch]
Stone delivers an unbelievably brave performance, using her body in a way A list movie stars rarely do.
Poor Things is hilarious, inventive, beautifully made and the most unashamedly weird mainstream film in recent memory.
Directed by Greek filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos, Poor Things offers a fresh take on the Frankenstein story set in a steampunk past.
It is an absolute delight for those who know and love Lanthimos’ trademark off-kilter tone from films like The Lobster and The Favourite, but might be a tough sit for those who do not.
Poor Things follows Bella Baxter (an incredible Emma Stone) who is reanimated by mad scientist Godwin Baxter (a typically monstrous Willem Dafoe).
She is revived in an adult body but with a baby’s brain and the film tracks her as she uncovers the pleasures and pains of the world.
You might find there are some insights to be learned from looking at the world through a pair of fresh, unbiased eyes.
There’s plenty of childlike rudeness played for laughs in an adult setting, as well as swearing, sex and breaking of social etiquette in every way you could imagine.
This is a film that luxuriates in its bad manners, using Bella as an avatar to say all the things that we privately think but are too afraid to utter out loud.
It is European arthouse fare that is being seen by wider audiences because of its stars in Stone, Dafoe and Mark Ruffalo.
Make no mistake however, it remains an arthouse film.
For casual cinemagoers who typically stick to the newest Netflix release, Poor Things might be a difficult journey, so be forewarned.
If you are willing to buy into Lanthimos’ vision though, you will no doubt have a great time at the movies.
Every frame of this film is like a painting and there are some things rendered that I have truly never seen before.
Stone delivers an unbelievably brave performance, using her body in a way A list movie stars rarely do.
And Ruffalo is clearly thrilled to be out from under the weight of his Marvel Hulk costume and gives a delightfully unhinged performance that is one of the funniest of the year.
Poor Things is already a winner at the Golden Globes, keep an eye out for it at the Oscars.
Rated 18 for Sex, Nudity, Language and Violence.
4/5.
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