Poor Things

What the fuck did I just watch?! What in the world was that?!

I haven't been to the movies much lately. I usually don't like going to the movies either. I can't focus on something for that long. I need pauses. I need bathroom breaks. I need snack breaks. Movie theaters don't really accommodate for those needs. I went to the AMC theater on 34th Street a few years ago to watch Dune: Part One with Keegan. I remember really liking the theater, so I decided to take a trip back there last night. Although I don't typically like going to the movies, I want to start going more. I love giving my opinion on things and movies are so easy to write opinions about. I like talking about movies and tv shows with my sister, Phoebe. She gives good insights into things I would never see or understand. She's even convinced me to get a Letterboxd account. She told me I might enjoy Yorgos Lanthimos' new film, Poor Things, starring Emma Stone and Mark Ruffalo. I took the recommendation and I saw it after my night class last night. A two and a half hour movie, starting at 10:20pm, is quite brutal yet enjoyable. I like being alone in the city. I felt like such a big grown boy. I walked into Poor Things expecting it to be weird. Phoebe gave me a breakdown of what to expect. It somehow exceeded those expectations. I don't want to spoil the movie and I do highly suggest going to see it before the Oscars, as it is nominated for eleven categories. This review is solely based on the artistic vision of the director, the costume design and the wonderful acting. Starting with the artistic vision of the director, Yorgos Lanthimos. Before last night, I don't think I've seen any of his work before. I looked through his IMDB and I didn't immediately recognize anything. I know Brain Dead Studio's Theater is spot lighting him this month, but really nothing else. I now know one thing about Yorgos. He is a weird dude, but he is a beautiful thinker. I love weird and out of the box. Nobody else could make a movie like that. It is so unbelievably unique. There are short scenes in-between the character's travels saying what city they are in and they are so bizarre. Eye balls here. Eye balls there. Floating bridges. Wild! The set design was also nothing short of bizarre. I really liked the cinematography. I'm not usually a fan of unrealistic buildings and settings, but the fit well into the setting of the movie. The buildings in Lisbon are great examples of this. They weren't realistic, but they fit and you knew where they were. The sky looked like it was painted and animated the whole movie. That was an interesting idea, but again, it worked. The writing was pretty good too. I saved all the craziest lines in my phone so I could relay them to Phoebe after the movie finished. The costume design was also something else and I think they nailed it. The movie is supposed to be set in 1890's victorian London, but it aisles has some sci-fi and steampunky aspects. That's a lot to take into consideration when it comes to dressing the characters. The dresses and suits fit each character perfectly. The bright colors in the warmer moments, like the main character, Bella Baxter's canary yellow covering towards the end of the movie. The acting was exceptional too. I love Emma Stone, especially in LaLa Land, but this was once again, a great performance. It was not an easy character to play, between the awkward movements and the numerous sex scenes. Honestly, I don't understand how an actor/actress signs up to do a project like this. There were so many sex scenes. That's probably my only complaint, because they felt unnecessary at points. I started thinking that Yorgos was into Emma Stone in a weird way. Her acting really made Bella Baxter come to life. The acting starts so strong in the beginning, when her character is in early development. Acting like a child so perfectly was so impressive. This wasn't my favorite movie of all time though. There were some errors here and there, but all around, I really enjoyed it. I probably couldn't watch it all the time and it is certainly an "artsy" movie, if that makes sense? Now that I have context, I really hope it wins a couple Oscars. They definitely deserve awards artistically. Happy Friday! Go watch a movie!