An account of the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter, a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter.An account of the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter, a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter.An account of the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter, a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter.
- Won 4 Oscars
- 120 wins & 419 nominations total
Anders Olof Grundberg
- Kid in London Street
- (as Anders Grundberg)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Summary
Reviewers say 'Poor Things' is visually striking with standout performances by Emma Stone and Willem Dafoe. It delves into feminism, liberation, and societal norms through a surreal lens. Critics laud its unique cinematography and bold storytelling but note uneven pacing and character depth. The film's sexual content and portrayal of Bella have sparked controversy, making it a thought-provoking yet divisive experience.
Featured reviews
I very much enjoyed Poor Things and the performances done by Emma Stone, Mark Ruffalo and Willem Dafoe. I was absolutely taken by the surrealistic set design and even psychological interaction depiction between the doctor and his patient Bella. A complicated and fanciful character is Bella inhabiting the resurrected body of her mother via a brain transplant. Oh my such medical technology. It's a good thing that's not possible yet today. Bella was gifted a free experience as she became conscious of the world and herself by her brilliant surgeon father a vocation as it turns out would become her lifetime vocation. The story continued on briefly after her father's death and an extensive excursion through life, relationships, and time. Generally speaking storyline, cinematography, set design, location, interactive character development we're all done to perfection. I've only touched on it a microscopic portion of the scope of this film. So much to enjoy here this little paragraph doesn't even begin to do it justice.
I loved this movie from start to finish. Went into it having zero clue what it was about, and only knew Emma Stone was in it. 2 mins in I leaned over to my partner and said "this movie is absolutely bonkers, and I love it!"
What kind of genius is that! All of the acting was on point, the cinematography was A++ the costumes and sets/scenes/CGI, I actually just can't fault it. I laughed so loud, so many times, and I shed a few tears too.
Very poignant, and poetic, with fantastic "morals of the story" I took away a lot, it had beautiful messages of self growth and discovery. Had the good, the bad and the ugly, all mixed into a weird lil soup.
Best movie I have seen in a very long time. Big fan.
What kind of genius is that! All of the acting was on point, the cinematography was A++ the costumes and sets/scenes/CGI, I actually just can't fault it. I laughed so loud, so many times, and I shed a few tears too.
Very poignant, and poetic, with fantastic "morals of the story" I took away a lot, it had beautiful messages of self growth and discovery. Had the good, the bad and the ugly, all mixed into a weird lil soup.
Best movie I have seen in a very long time. Big fan.
This is a very unusual movie. I enjoyed watching it, even though it felt awkward at times (as promised by the creators and many reviewers). In my opinion, many users who gave it a 1/10, missed the point. For sure, it is a movie for very mature and sophisticated audiences. It contains a lot of ugly truths about the world, so don't watch it if those bother you. (Don't watch it with teenagers, either, wait until they are 20 or 21.) I appreciated the creative direction, cinematography, and Emma Stone's acting talent. The plot covers multiple aspects of privilege and abuse in thought-provoking ways. On a very high level, you could say that it has some similarities to Barbie, but a very different approach. It is almost the anti-Barbie. The contrast between these two 2023 movies is definitely worth a class discussion in some graduate course of film criticism.
Where to begin with this one....
First off, the performances presented here are top of their class. Absolutely phenomenal! In a film with characters as strange as these, you need a strong cast and every player here was up to the task and more! Just brilliant!
Secondly, the story is insane. I mean padded room, straight jacket type of insane. When reading the synopsis, I was thinking about how wild of a concept it was and did not think they could pull off such an audacious plot. However, Yorgos and company had a specific vision for this film and it shows in the amount of detail in both the screenplay and the visionary artistic decisions. I can say, they completely nailed it!
Thirdly, exploring the human condition through sexuality, in all emotional forms, has been done before. Though, never quite like this. It was refreshing to see it through the eyes of someone reborn and ready for everything life had to throw her, as opposed to the usual timid youthful eyes.
Lastly, the cinematography is wonderfully done. Mixing between black and white to full color, with wild scenery and beautifully detailed architecture. Sometimes the film felt like a dream captured within a painting. It was quite beautiful.
Overall, I would highly recommend it. I don't think it will be everyone's cup of tea. It is very artsy, very sexually uncomfortable, and very strange. However, if you enjoy great storytelling and truly original visions on film, better see this on the big screen.
4.5 surgerys out of 5.
First off, the performances presented here are top of their class. Absolutely phenomenal! In a film with characters as strange as these, you need a strong cast and every player here was up to the task and more! Just brilliant!
Secondly, the story is insane. I mean padded room, straight jacket type of insane. When reading the synopsis, I was thinking about how wild of a concept it was and did not think they could pull off such an audacious plot. However, Yorgos and company had a specific vision for this film and it shows in the amount of detail in both the screenplay and the visionary artistic decisions. I can say, they completely nailed it!
Thirdly, exploring the human condition through sexuality, in all emotional forms, has been done before. Though, never quite like this. It was refreshing to see it through the eyes of someone reborn and ready for everything life had to throw her, as opposed to the usual timid youthful eyes.
Lastly, the cinematography is wonderfully done. Mixing between black and white to full color, with wild scenery and beautifully detailed architecture. Sometimes the film felt like a dream captured within a painting. It was quite beautiful.
Overall, I would highly recommend it. I don't think it will be everyone's cup of tea. It is very artsy, very sexually uncomfortable, and very strange. However, if you enjoy great storytelling and truly original visions on film, better see this on the big screen.
4.5 surgerys out of 5.
Truly a masterpiece for the senses, but it could be socking for the untrained in psychoanalysis brain. Bella is FREE of societal rules, shame, or gender roles. Free to explore the world, societal norms and create her own self identity as she pleases. A journey that forces her to confront misogynism, sexual fixations and complexes. What moved me was her raw empathy for human suffering, while she could dissasociate from it when facing a threat. Fearless and daring she conquered her world under her loving and accepting god's eye.. One could focus on the feminist aspect of the film, but Bella is much much more than that. She is a human free of social constructs. She does not need feminism because she has no recolection of patriarchy in her existense and feminism can only be needed only to oppose patriarchy. Bella disregards any social norm and IS, which results in the deconstruction of all social and gender theory. Pure enstict roaming the world..
I rated 9/10 because i thought the goat general was a petty joke. You cant call monsters the creators and then become and create one yourself.. Besides the meaningless ending this is a true masterpiece.
Did you know
- TriviaWillem Dafoe described the makeup process, "Four hours in, two hours out every day - I'm showing up at three o'clock in the morning, sitting in the chair, meditating and trying to deal with standing still. You can't sleep because it's intricate enough that you've got to work with the people applying it. It's a grind, but I liked working with a mask in there - quite literally, a mask."
- GoofsMark Ruffalo's attempt at a British accent is extremely unconvincing.
However, an unconvincing accent is simply a limitation of the actor's ability and not a mistake on the part of the filmmakers. Also, what is considered unconvincing is a subjective matter of opinion.
- Quotes
Bella Baxter: [on the wailing infant] I must go punch that baby.
- Crazy creditsThe opening and closing credits are shown as a frame around the image.
- Alternate versionsThe UK's BBFC viewed the film during editing to provide advice on classification, and informed the distributor it required changes to one short sequence to secure an "18" rating. The scene depicted sexual activity in the presence of children. Under UK law, this could be illegal and therefore required removal before being distributed within the country. The changes were made before formal classification, and this same version of the film was ultimately released everywhere.
- ConnectionsFeatured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Best Movies of 2023 (2023)
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Languages
- Also known as
- Pobres criaturas
- Filming locations
- Origo Film Studio, Budapest, Hungary(soundstages)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $35,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $34,553,225
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $661,230
- Dec 10, 2023
- Gross worldwide
- $117,625,455
- Runtime2 hours 21 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.66 : 1
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