Director: Yorgos Lanthimos
Writer: Tony McNamara, based on the book by Alasdair Gray
Cast: Emma Stone, Willem Dafoe, Ramy Youssef, Mark Ruffalo, Vicki Pepperdine, Margaret Qualley

If you are familiar with Yorgos Lanthimos’s work, you’ll be keenly aware that his films are an artform unto themselves. He often deftly dabbles with the surreal, the macabre and the downright insane while blending in familiar themes and visual delights. The story of Poor Things appears to be one right up his alley, one that allows him a particular freedom to create something that has all the potential to be his best work yet. Has he, along with his cast and crew, kept up the trend of fascinating yet entertaining cinema, or is Poor Things one step too far for the imagination?

(Note: I have not yet read the novel, and so this review is purely based on the film.)

In Victorian England, the disfigured surgeon Godwin ‘God’ Baxter (Dafoe) hires medical student Max McCandles (Youssef) as his assistant. Max meets Godwin’s ward, Bella Baxter (Stone), a young woman with the literal brain of a child. Max begins to fall for Bella as she mentally matures, but along with her maturity comes Bella’s curiosity for the outside world. Wishing to explore before committing herself to Max, Bella sets out on an international adventure with the corrupt and deviant lawyer Duncan Wedderburn (Ruffalo), wishing to discover more about herself and the world, and perhaps where she came from before Godwin met her.

The plot of Poor Things is a remarkable and unconventional one that explores much of what it means to be human, particularly if your life essentially begins in a full-grown body. There are perhaps other directors that could have done decent work with Alasdair Gray’s story and/or Tony McNamara’s adapted screenplay, however Lanthimos has an uncanny ability to balance realism with the bizarre so as to satisfy those with odd curiosity yet not alienate those with more of a mainstream disposition when it comes to film viewing. Much like his previous works, The Favourite and The Lobster in particular, the characters are larger than life, with their physical appearances and characteristics much exaggerated, as though to emphasise that which Lanthimos wants his audience to focus on within each scene. There are many clear influences, such as the writings of Mary Shelley and Bram Stoker and the filmmaking styles of David Lynch and Terry Gilliam, within the story and the visuals, and it all comes together to create something that does feel unique.

As the story progresses, the cinematography remains the same, with a mix of angles, shots and lenses to provide different and interesting perspectives, but the costumes and set designs change and grow in a similar way to the character of Bella, as she too changes and grows. It is, essentially, Bella’s world, and we’re privy to her thoughts and actions. Half the film is black and white, half becomes colour. The costumes are more subtle initially, then growing bolder and overstated. The sets are fantastically thought out and have a steampunk theme much of the way through. Something about the grandeur and surrealism of it all is highly reminiscent of the 2000 BBC adaptation of Mervyn Peake’s Gormenghast. We understand the time setting of the film, and yet much of it is more scattered throughout history to give it a sense of not belonging to any particular time, or perhaps even to the same world we live in. Much of it is familiar yet unfamiliar in its elements, both real and fantastical, lending the film a lot of intrigue.

Emma Stone has been highly commended thus far for her performance, and it is clear to see why. She skilfully steers Bella through childhood, adolescence and a semblance of adulthood in fairly quick succession. Her collaborations with Lanthimos are starting to become arguably legendary, and the comfortable relationship between actor and director is clear to see. Stone also goes full-frontal for many a sex scene, and she performs with the utmost care for her character. Some of the aforementioned scenes are with Ruffalo, and both are up for Academy Awards for their performances (Stone already nabbed Best Actress at the BAFTAs, with Poor Things generally doing very well across the board). Ruffalo’s character is truly one to love to hate, and he very much has his funny moments, but Ruffalo’s attempt at an English accent is a little off-putting at times. Dafoe on the other hand does rather a decent light Scottish accent, and his overall performance is understated but full of surprises. Youssef’s Max is often the lynchpin between characters, and although Max doesn’t offer much to the story within his character, Youssef superbly brings the scenes together when onscreen. There are also many good supporting performances, particularly Qualley’s minimal scenes as Felicity, Godwin’s next project, but the leads are excellent overall and do wonders to bring the story to life.

Poor Things will not be everyone’s cup of tea, however it’s truly wonderful to see filmmakers such as Lanthimos keeping this side of cinema alive, with the surrealistic elements and offering something other than your standard blockbuster. The cast and crew have earned their accolades and nominations, totally deserving of being in the running for the top awards this year. I, for one, am very glad Lanthimos continues to keep up his standards and I will very much be anticipating his next feature, which looks set to see him reunite with Stone, Dafoe and Qualley.