There is no proper way of beginning a review of Yorgos Lanthimos’ Golden Globe Award-winning film “Poor Things” starring best actress winner Emma Stone, based on a novel of the same name by Alasdair Gray. For 2 hours and 21 minutes, the sensorial experience felt inside the theater through this cinematic masterpiece is nothing short of incredible—in an unhinged, confusing, yet compelling kind of way—and even as I’ve allowed my thoughts on it to simmer overnight, I still struggle to put them into words.
Emma Stone in POOR THINGS. Photo by Yorgos Lanthimos, Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2024 Searchlight Pictures All Rights Reserved.
“Poor Things” is, in essence, one Frankenstein-like creation’s journey into becoming a strong, independent woman who takes charge of her own body and develops her own ideologies without being deterred about what’s “polite” and “proper.” Emma Stone plays Bella Baxter, who “came to life” after renowned surgeon Godwin Baxter (played by Willem Dafoe) found her lifeless pregnant body in the river and transplanted her baby’s brain into her own head. Her development is fast, studied closely by Godwin’s eager student Maxwell McCandles (Ramy Youssef) who he employs for that purpose, but this rapid progress leads Bella to discover things about her body resulting in an insatiable desire for physical pleasure.
This becomes easy for womanizing lawyer Duncan Wedderburn (portrayed by Mark Ruffalo) to take advantage of Bella and entice her to accompany him to explore the outside world. Unable to dissuade Bella from leaving, Godwin lets her go. Thus begins Bella and Duncan’s passionate sexual escapade in Lisbon, which leads to a complicating relationship while aboard a ship to Alexandria, before ending up penniless and resentful towards each other on the streets of Marseille.
Mark Ruffalo in POOR THINGS. Photo by Yorgos Lanthimos. Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2023 20th Century Studios All Rights Reserved.
Emma Stone in POOR THINGS. Photo Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2024 Searchlight Pictures All Rights Reserved.
Bella starts work at a brothel (willingly, which is important to note) and earns her keep pleasuring men whom she makes an effort to have a connection with (a result of her learning about empathy earlier on). And, like in all stories, we watch her conclude her journey of self-discovery through the act of coming home, confronting her dying father, being with Maxwell, and realizing her aspiration to take after Godwin and become a surgeon.
(Of course, I purposely glossed over many, many details to avoid spoiling anything from the wild narrative.)
Ramy Youssef and Willem Dafoe in POOR THINGS. Photo by Yorgos Lanthimos. Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures.© 2023 Searchlight Pictures All Rights Reserved.
Following Bella’s adventures was a hell of a ride, especially as we witness her come into her own being—mastering her strides, taking charge of her sexuality, sharpening her vocabulary, discovering the reality of the world, making friends, and forming her own opinions—made more evident by the changing colors of the film, from a hazy black-and-white when she is first “birthed” to a sudden vibrant visual spectacle during her first sexual experience.
I’d be remiss not to mention the gorgeous outfits that Emma Stone got to wear—all ruffles and puffy sleeves and avant-garde pieces both sexy and elegant. The set design was just as remarkable, blending reality and fantasy with its gothic and steampunk elements that make up an otherworldly Victorian-era Europe.
“Poor Things” definitely left a lasting mark on me. It made me laugh out loud and yell with bewilderment and, if I wasn’t doing either, I was gaping at the big screen deeply engrossed in the narrative. I loved it—I absolutely loved it. Never have I wanted to pick up a book that a film adapted as soon as the credits rolled the way I did after “Poor Things”, if only to piece together what exactly I had just witnessed. Or perhaps what this just calls for is another watch at the cinema. One thing’s for sure: I wouldn’t mind diving headfirst into this dark and wacky universe once again.
Emma Stone in POOR THINGS. Photo by Yorgos Lanthimos, Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2023 Searchlight Pictures All Rights Reserved.
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