Poor Things

This film is my guess for the one which will win the grand prize at the Venice Film Festival. Despite its inevitable mass reproduction and advertisement, this movie offers higher-level structure that its contemporary counterparts often do not. First and foremost, this film is closely related to Christianity in an unintuitive manner – it neither rejects nor accepts its premises, rather examines the world as one which is inextricably linked to its intuitions. The general narrative structure follows one of the parable of the prodigal son – Emma Stone’s character leaves her father, expends her innocence and returns back to him. The picture takes the audience through a quirky yet beautiful world that we often fail to see in our own reality. Despite superb performances by Emma Stone and Mark Ruffalo, the screenplay lacks a depth that is necessary in approaching questions of maturity, prostitution and love. Even the most sensitive viewers can make it through the film without shedding a single tear or expressing a single frown. Looking past the wry Greek humor, the skeleton of the narrative is entirely meatless. No complex conclusive or even inconclusive claims are promoted by the plot. If this is Lanthimos’ thesis, that all of life should be treated with an uncomplex aloofness, then it is a sexy, yet profoundly evil one. In an age where turning off our brains and scrolling through social media is the most common way to use our spare time, perhaps we should not repeat the mistakes of Stone’s character. We should use our valuable time with intent, purpose and thought.