Anomalisa

Directed by Charlie Kaufman (the man behind such films as Being John Malkovitch & Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) and stop motion specialist Duke Johnson, this film originally started off as a sound play back in 2005 with the actors onstage reciting their character's lines with Carter Burwell's score (that's also used in this movie) in the background. Originally intended as a 40 minute stop motion short, thanks to a Kickstarter campaign which got much more money than previously intended, the movie was turned into feature length with all 3 actors reprising their roles.. After garnering critical acclaim at various film festivals, this ended up being the very first R rated animated film to be nominated for an Oscar for Best Animated Feature, but obviously lost to Pixar's Inside Out this year. So, can Charlie Kaufman show stop motion is more than a medium that's an anomaly in the field of film, or is it just an anonmalation in a bad way? Let's take a look!

Story: Focusing on customer service expert Michael Stone in Cincinnati during his book tour during his midlife crisis. Inside, his life feels meaningless with a sea of people who look & sound exactly the same in his head until he meets Lisa, a fan of his & they develop a strong connection like he has never imagined. Or so he thinks. Reminiscent of other films like Lost in Translation, the best way I can describe the plot is real (believe me when I say that this word will be used A LOT in this review). Real characters, real setting, real emotions, everything feels so real & it's so well done. The emotions behind Michael's existential crisis are executed perfectly with how his psychosis has deeply affected his relationships with other people, including his own wife and son. Although the main romance between him & Lisa can just be considered a one night stand in the grand scale of things, I must say that the chemistry is so believable and touching that you almost forget the unfortunate implications of it all. Oh, and speaking of, I know it may sound very strange, but this easily contains one of the best sex scenes ever put in film. I'm dead serious when I say that the realism makes it surprisingly tender from the direction & I must give major kudos. And given that most of the film focuses on psychology, I must say that it can get pretty dark & tense as it dives into the themes and the way everything is 'resolved' is handled much more  I guess the only issue I have in terms of plot is one particular scene when Michael enters a 'toy shop'. It doesn't really have a purpose in the narrative other than a supposed 'funny' pay-off by the end, and I will also say that the pacing can be a tad off from time to time. It's not terrible & it definitely didn't ruin the movie for me, so those can easily just be considered nitpicks. With such an innovative concept handled in such an intimate manner, I think it's safe to say that this movie is nothing like I've seen before & the writing is just a part of why this movie was such a surprising pleasure to watch.

Animation: I never thought I'd see the day, but this movie somehow manages to depict reality even more than the many live action films that plague cinemas today. This can be shown through the much more realistic character designs (which fits everyone perfectly through Michael's eyes) & character animation, both of which perfectly capture the character's personalities & the attention to detail on the textures like the skin, hair & facial expressions is frankly amazing. And speaking of character animation, yes I'll quickly talk about the sex scene because while it easily could have been unintentionally hilarious or over the top like the sex scene from Team America World Police, the rawness & realism behind it manages to benefit the execution. The backgrounds of Hotel Fregoli & streets of Cincinnati also manage to help capture the realness of the movie & given that most of the movie is set in the hotel, it still manages to be interesting because it feels like something we have all seen before & therefore, we can easily relate to it. Even the lighting helps establish the mood, emotions & atmosphere of certain scenes along with the camera techniques up to the point that I almost forgot that this was in stop motion. While it may seem unusual to have the faces keep the lines on instead of editing them out, I feel it only further enhances the themes of everyone not being who they seem AKA hiding their true selves behind masks. It may be a tad distracting since it's on literally every single character, but I get the intentions behind that creative choice (at least from my perspective). Although many could argue that it was unnecessary to make this in stop motion because of how much it's treated like a live action film, I honestly feel like this was the only medium this movie could be in and the way it's executed is simply breathtaking.

Characters: Given that the story & animation are both treated, the same definitely can be said about the characters! Michael Stone (David Thewlis) has it all: a well paid job, a loving wife and kid & is a celebrated motivational speaker. But despite his life seeming perfect, he feels hollow & meaningless on the inside & it makes him such an interesting character to know about. While he may come across as a bit of a jerkass (given that he cheats on his wife) & is rather...predatory in his relationship with Lisa, his true feelings do help him become empathetic. In fact, I actually rather like seeing movies where the main character isn't someone to root for because the motivations behind their behaviour make them feel much more human. The titular Lisa (Jennifer Jason Leigh) may seem like your typical manic pixie dream girl who comes in to change Michael's life for the better, but as the movie progresses on their 'relationship (or rather one-night stand), the movie shows how human she really is. She does have her own flaws, isn't as perfect as she seems while still being pretty adorkable & both her & Michael have to act like adults & realize the consequences behind their supposed star crossed lovers romance. Other characters like Bella, Michael's former flame he meets at the start, Emily, Lisa's flirtatious best friend who the latter believes is better than her & Michael's wife all also stand out on their own with their own personalities without resorting to stereotypes despite their lack of screen time. However, what makes them (and for that matter everybody else around Michael & Lisa) very interesting is given that it's in Michael's head, they are all EXACTLY the same. With the exact same voice actor & facial structure, this only further emphasizes how empty Michael feels & it's masterfully done (despite the occurrence when Michael pretty much says to the audience what his delusions are). I really must give credit to Tom Noonan as he really convincingly manages to pull off each character without making it too distracting & to be honest, it's frankly amazing he hasn't been nominated for any awards because of how much effort he had put in. With characters as human as these, I think it's safe to say that the characters in this are the cherry on the top for much an amazing film.

Anomalisa is a thought provoking film which looks into the human mind in such a unique way. With a simple yet relateable & heart-wrenching story, stunning stop motion animation which fits the world perfectly & very human characters, I'm so glad I finally had a chance to watch it after hearing such wonderful things about it. It's definitely a must watch for those in the mood for more of an indie style film or those who like other works by Charlie Kaufman. Oh yeah, and kids should definitely not watch this. Not just because of the swearing, sexual references & sex scene, but also the dark themes like depression, midlife crises & existentialism which are dived into in a very mature & serious manner. Seriously, I feel bad that this movie hasn't gotten the attention is deserves because if it weren't for Inside Out being out the same year, I easily would have chosen this as the Oscar winner!

Story: 9/10

Animation: 10/10

Characters: 9/10

Overall: 9/10