Poor Things

The Daughter of Frankenstein and her emancipatory odyssey across Europe and the Mediterranean. Once again, Yorgos Lanthimos presents us with a fragment from a twisted fantasy world, but one that bears more parallels to our own than one might first expect. The story focuses on the development of the character Bella, who is brought back to life after death by a peculiar scientist, whereupon, with the brain of a child, she learns about the world and gradually develops in all directions, even those that could be described as taboo. Emma Stone gives a masterful performance, and her character packs on more and more layers as the minutes pass until the triumphant finale. This engaging, visually extravagant and humorous film about the journey of an original protagonists of real-world discovery and gradual emancipation will definitely not bore you for a moment. (10/12/2023)

Poor Things is a tremendously charming and wildly playful cinematic bildungsroman that demolishes gender roles and patriarchal fallacies with unbridled childlike verve, while grandiosely revealing their absurdity. Whereas Barbie was built on a shared sisterly sigh with a smile and remained in the realm of consumerist conformity while glorifying plastic kitsch, Poor Things offers up a lavish and iconoclastic riot grrrl pamphlet with a likable pout. Bella Baxter is a captivating, monstrous role model. Her journey through the world inevitably leads to her coming of age, but not in the sense of abandoning immediacy and committing herself to accepting the lot in life that others have laid out for her. Bella gets to know the world with its painful paradoxes, but she does not let herself be constrained by those around her and can conversely build places of personal freedom within herself and in her immediate surroundings amid all of the social nonsense. The film incorporates all of this into a sort of Art Nouveau ornament that is simultaneously delightfully beautiful and unavoidably bittersweet, as the steampunk stylisation and grotesque derangement constantly highlight its fantastical and thus unrealistic essence. (02/19/2024)

It has been a long time since a performance has captivated me as much as Emma Stone's here. I was cautious, because Yorgos Lanthimos's The Favourite didn't impress me as much as the rest of the world five years ago, and yet at least on the surface it seemed like a relatively normal film. Poor Things isn’t like that, it was immensely enjoyable from the opening scene. Victorian surrealism, strange scenes alternating with stranger ones, and gradually everything starts to make sense, but you still have no idea where it's going. I'm sure the film is brimming with all sorts of psychological and philosophical meanings; double, triple and multiple meanings that can be gradually revealed, but aren't necessary. It can stand without them and conveys its message easily to everyone, however bizarre the story and its protagonists are. (01/11/2024)

A bizarre social satire tackling some of today's hot topics. Full of metaphors and subtle allusions, in an unusually bold visual concept of 1950s cardboard sets, black-and-white inserts and fish-eye camera orgies. A freak show love story that shows a complex palette of emotions and snapshots of adult life, it just loses its edge in places. Cut it, cut the sex scenes by half and 110 minutes of running time would be acceptable. This way we can admire the bold and distinctive story and the result is primarily controversial and only then entertaining. (07/09/2024)

Exactly what I expected — another wonderfully weird Greek film that’s not only bizarre but also highly cinematic, especially in its visuals. The way the director tilts the camera felt inspired by Karel Zeman and Wes Anderson. And Emma Stone is absolutely perfect, clearly having the time of her life with this role. Her Oscar is well-deserved. In the end, it’s a major cinematic experience, a film with depth, and a reminder that cinema should always amaze, surprise, and entertain its audience. Despite its epic strangeness (which might be why I’m holding back on that fifth star), Poor Things excels brilliantly. (04/04/2024)