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In 2018, Yorgos Lanthimos delighted audiences at the Venice Film Festival with his unconventional and eccentric film featuring duck-racing, break-dancing, and kinky sex games in the court of Queen Anne. Now, Lanthimos is back with an even more outlandish and wildly enjoyable movie called Poor Things. Collaborating once again with screenwriter Tony McNamara and star Emma Stone, Lanthimos brings to life a surreal version of Victorian London, adapting Alasdair Gray’s 1992 novel. Dr. Godwin Baxter’s home is adorned with Salvador Dalí’s decor and pets by Hieronymus Bosch, creating an intricately bizarre aesthetic that could make Terry Gilliam envious.
Emma Stone portrays Bella Baxter, a naive and childlike woman who navigates Victorian London with a vacant expression, spouting comedic non-sequiturs and relieving herself wherever she pleases. Willem Dafoe plays Godwin Baxter, her “God” and an experimental surgeon with a face resembling a badly botched suturing job. As Bella’s creator, Godwin embodies both Frankenstein and his monster, simultaneously serving as a father figure with a schoolmasterly demeanor and evoking elements of Pygmalion. Despite its twisted nature, every aspect of this world has a precise scientific justification. To monitor Bella’s progress, Godwin enlists Max McCandles (Ramy Youssef), who starts as an objective observer but soon becomes infatuated.
Lanthimos infuses the story with sexuality, as Bella embraces self-pleasure and explores her newfound desires. In Victorian Britain, the awakening of female sexuality triggers fear and predation in men who seek to control Bella. The film eventually delves into its feminist subtext, highlighting the struggle for power and autonomy.
Enter Mark Ruffalo as the dandy Duncan Wedderburn, exuding charm and sporting a twitching mustache. His character’s voice sometimes betrays hints of Wisconsin, blending with Dafoe’s ostensible Scottish burr in a film filled with grotesque distortions. Cinematographer Robbie Ryan, known for his work on The Favourite, employs a fish-eye lens, while Jerskin Fendrix provides discordant notes and melodies on the soundtrack.
As Bella and her new beau embark on a tour of Europe, their journey involves plenty of “furious jumping” (which will undoubtedly lead to debates about the amount of time Stone spends partially or fully naked). However, the story takes a darker turn as Bella’s understanding deepens, transforming the narrative into a picaresque travelogue. One of the film’s great pleasures is watching Ruffalo’s character unravel, but it is Stone’s burning intensity that truly anchors the film, making it a potential favorite for the Venice jury, led by her previous collaborator Damien Chazelle from La La Land.
Poor Things is a cinematic assault on the senses, featuring stellar work from art director Dániel Miklós, costume designer Holly Waddington, and the visionary director Lanthimos. Among mainstream directors, Lanth
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