The incredible tale about the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter; a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist, Dr. Godwin Baxter.

‘Poor Things’ is the latest movie from Yorgos Lanthimos, an adaptation of a 1992 novel by Alasdair Gray that tells the story of a woman, who upon her suicide, is resurrected by a scientist in Victorian era London. She is Bella Baxter, played by the outrageously good Emma Stone, and ‘Poor Things’ is the story of how she goes on a journey of discovery about the world and herself. It is a science fantasy black comedy (so says Wikipedia), taking place in a world that is not unlike ours in the past, yet different at the same time with the choice to film on sets amplifying the strangeness of the fantastical world being depicted. Stylistically there are similarities with the worlds created by Terry Gilliam, but in most other aspects, most notably its humour, ‘Poor Things’ is very much its own beast.

The film begins by introducing us to Bella through the eyes of her creator Godwin or ‘God’ (Willem Dafoe, rocking facial scarring and an attempt at a Scottish accent) and a medical student called Max (Ramy Youssef) who has been hired by Godwin to study her. Physically a grown women but mentally childlike, she matures at a fast rate and Max finds himself in love with her, leading him to propose a marriage. However, he isn’t reckoning for the arrival of Mark Ruffalo’s lawyer Duncan, or with Bella’s desire for autonomy and adventure, and she sets off on a trip to Lisbon with Duncan instead of getting married, and this is where the movie really kicks in. The movie essentially imagines how a woman would view the world if not influenced or preconditioned by societal norms and a traditional upbringing, and this leads to a lot of awkward interactions between Bella and other people, who are not comfortable with or used to her direct approach – particularly when it comes to matters of sex. This is an aspect Lanthimos has explored to great effect in previous films, and ‘Poor Things’ is gets a lot of mileage, and some of the funniest scenes, out of these interactions.

It should be said that ‘Poor Things’ is comfortably one of the funniest films I’ve seen in some time, with brilliant dialogue, terrifically uncomfortable settings and superb comic acting, from both Stone and Ruffalo. Emma Stone is as mentioned, outstanding, capturing every element of her characters journey from essentially a child to a smart woman, but she’s more than matched by Mark Ruffalo’s pompous twit, in a performance that had me in stitches. Every moment with him is golden and his line delivery and posh accent are magnificent. In terms of the plot, I did feel it started to lose a bit of momentum in the final act and is perhaps a shade too long, but overall ‘Poor Things’ is innovative, off the wall and engrossing with fabulous performances, and certainly warrants its status as one of the frontrunners for major awards this year.

Rating: 4/5

Directed By: Yorgos Lanthimos

Starring: Emma Stone, Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe, Ramy Youssef, Christopher Abbott, Kathryn Hunter, Jerrod Carmichael, Hanna Schygulla, Margaret Qualley and Vicki Pepperdine

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt14230458/