Poor Things

I watched the movie without really knowing what to expect. The trailer seemed interesting, I thought the idea was pretty original.

Some characters I could never really warm up to, but maybe that was supposed to be the point. I loved the father-daughter dynamic between Bella and Godwin.

Overall it feels a bit like a fever dream, never knowing what is real and what is just imagination. The cinematography is stunning, very colourful and just beautiful sets and I enjoyed the originality of the camera angles too. The cast did an amazing job, especially Emma Stone really carried the movie, portraying Bella as strange but likeable.

The film Poor Things (2023) stands out as a unique yet very peculiar jewel in Hollywood cinema, marked by its creative storytelling and striking visual aesthetics. The film immediately grabs your attention with its very unusual and weird artistic elements.

The cinematography is nothing short of amazing, introducing a blend of black and white scenes that add a layer of complexity and depth and colored scenes. The cinematography is consistently innovative, with techniques that often repeat, for instance, 360 degree shots (fisheye shot), fast zoom-ins and zoom-outs, medium full shots, overhead shots, and Scorsese-like quick pans from left to right. This type of cinematography added more dynamism to the visual experience. The film's use of CGI added an extra layer of surrealism as per its theme. The dance scenes are even more captivating.

One of the film's most striking features is its unusual yet compelling use of sound and music. The vintage lo-fi, bending, peculiar vibe of the soundtrack complements the visual narrative perfectly, while the experimental use of musical instruments like the oboe as a bass element in certain scenes is nothing short of innovative. Moreover, the violin orchestra music with Interstellar-like organs plays a pivotal role in enhancing the storytelling. I really liked how the film handled the climactic moments, especially with the powerful use of a single, sustained music note. This technique, like a scene from the film 'Tenet' (2020), brings a distinct and dramatic impact to the crucial moments of the movie.

The narrative structure of 'Poor Things' is intriguingly unconventional. Emma Stone's performance is a standout, bringing depth and nuance to her character. Bella's character, living in a patriarchal world, adds a feminist perspective to the film, infused with humor and wit. Her unique accent and quirky personality greatly enhance the charm of the film. The dialogue, while peculiar, is engaging and often humorous. This type of humor in the cinema theater resonated well with audiences. And of course, the rest of the cast like Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe and others made a meaningful contribution to the film that tells the very peculiar and unconventional story.

In terms of thematic elements, 'Poor Things' shares similarities with Scorsese's 'The Wolf of Wall Street,' particularly with its more frequent and explicit use of sex scenes.

Throughout the film, the initially strange elements gradually become "the new normal", demonstrating the film's power to shift the viewer's perception. The film's direction is effectively balanced, allowing for the unique elements without being too overwhelming for the viewer.

In summary, 'Poor Things' is a film that pushes the boundaries of conventional visual storytelling. Its originality, combined with a strong cast, innovative cinematography, and a bizarre, out of the box narrative, makes it a remarkable cinematic achievement. However, from the emotional impact, it did not resonate with me.

Clearly a lot of people enjoyed this grotesque movie, but it wasn't for me. Some of the scenes in it made me feel sick, and maybe they were supposed to, but it seemed unnecessary. Don't even get me started on how pretentious the movie was.

I also found this movie very frustrating because the acting was good, the sets and costuming were good, and some scenes used striking cinematography. These things all made me feel like I should've liked the movie, but I don't. It could have been put to much better use.

The sex and nudity is beyond gratuitous. I'm usually not bothered by sex scenes in movies, but for this particular film it felt perverted. Maybe the director has a weird fetish.

Ultimately, this film made me want to crack my own head open and pour bleach over my brain. It's one of those movies I'd like to block out. I don't think I'll ever watch anything else by Lanthimos.

The movie explores the women's condition in our society trough the story of a girl who comes back to life. All her experience are a metaphore of real life, it makes you think what it is happening around us. Emma Stone is superlative in her role, Willem Defoe and Mark Ruffalo are the perfect supporting cast. The last point is about the director: he is able to show the story in a brilliant way passing from the back comedy (Tim Burton's style) to some dramatic scenes. The photography is changing during the movie, scenes are shown from different point of views. Also the music is perfect, it creates the atmosphere. The final result is an original movie, which analyses deeply our current.

Poor Things is a very, very strange and peculiar film. This film is about the freedom that every person must have, interpreted by the new life of Bella Baxter, a woman who is already physically adult but mentally child: a plot that I like. In this film we see the evolution that Bella gets and how she gets her psychological maturity, especially through lots of sex. In this film, in fact, there is a high dose of nudity with many very explicit scenes, of which I think at some point they could cut the amount. It's also quite a fantascentific film because a lot of the topics are impossible to find in real life. Lanthimos' direction is excellent, with many beautiful and extravagant filmmakers who keep the spectator on the piece. The image quality is gorgeous with so many amazing colors. Emma Stone does an incredible job and in fact her Oscar is ultra deserved: one thing that makes her performance perfect is also the fact of her courage in facing a film so sexually explicit, performing it at the top! Mark Ruffalo also does an excellent job like all the other actors. The characters are good and the costumes amazing, every detail of clothing is noticed and makes the idea of the setting, which is also amazing. The negative notes are in my opinion: the rhythm and duration of the film, in my opinion it could last even less than 2 hours cutting some scene too much, in fact sometimes I got very bored, and writing, sometimes in my opinion repetitive. The film also makes me laugh with extravagant jokes, as if the whole movie. The ending hasn't convinced me, even this good level. Poor Things is a movie that I will want to watch again.

. Rating: 8.4/10.