Anyone who has seen a Yorgos Lanthimos movie knows that the trailers are not going to tell you everything—or much of anything, necessarily. On the surface, Poor Things is the story of a woman Frankensteined into life, who seems to enjoy living and wishes to make the most of it.
There is almost definitely more to it.
Poor Things is based on the award-winning 1992 novel by Alasdair Gray, which has been adapted by Lanthimos’ The Favourite collaborator Tony McNamara (also the creator of The Great). The synopsis for the film says:
From filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos and producer Emma Stone comes the incredible tale and fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter (Stone), a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe). Under Baxter’s protection, Bella is eager to learn. Hungry for the worldliness she is lacking, Bella runs off with Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo), a slick and debauched lawyer, on a whirlwind adventure across the continents. Free from the prejudices of her times, Bella grows steadfast in her purpose to stand for equality and liberation.
Duncan Wedderburn! Let’s just pause for a second and appreciate that name. And to appreciate the particular physicality Stone is bringing to this role, as Bella tries to get a handle on the whole “being alive” thing.
Poor Things also stars Ramy Youssef, Jerrod Carmichael, and Christopher Abbott, and one certainly hopes there are also more women in the cast and that Bella Baxter is not relegated to being the one special girl of the entire movie.
You still have to wait until September 8th to catch Poor Things in theaters.
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