Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Poor Things (2023)

IMDb plot summary: The incredible tale about the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter, a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter.
Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos. Starring Emma Stone, Mark Ruffalo, and Willem Dafoe.

Poor Things is Yorgos Lanthimos' newest film, starring Emma Stone as a reanimated dead woman with the brain of a baby (then toddler, then child, and so on). As she grows and discovers more about the world around her, she sets off to explore, learn, and ultimately find herself. As one would expect with a Lanthimos film, this is a real weird movie. The premise is odd and it leans ALL the way into it and the steampunk aesthetics of the world in which it is set. And I absolutely fell in love with it. The colors and design of the movie are absolutely stunning and Stone is truly wonderful as our lead character, one of my favorite female characters onscreen in years and an incredible acting performance. Mark Ruffalo's supporting character is also extremely funny basically every time he shows up and is a great foil for Stone's straightforward honesty. I laughed so much throughout the film but also found myself caring deeply about our main character and marveling at the worldbuilding and pondering the deeper questions the story brought up. Definitely my favorite movie of 2023 so far, as well as my favorite from Lanthimos (and probably from Stone).

How it entered my Flickchart:
Poor Things > Captain Phillips
Poor Things > Key Largo
Poor Things > The White Tiger
Poor Things < The Great Dictator
Poor Things > Dick Tracy
Poor Things > Bicycle Thieves
Poor Things > 10 Cloverfield Lane
Poor Things > Sabrina (1954)
Poor Things < The Fly (1958)
Poor Things < Seven Psychopaths
Poor Things > The Bridge on the River Kwai
Poor Things < Some Like It Hot
Final spot: #255 out of 3876, or 93%.

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