Anomalisa

Despite being critically acclaimed, 'Anomalisa' seems to have divided audiences. People were left mesmerised and touched by the film, while others were alienated and perplexed by it.

After seeing 'Anomalisa' for myself, it is not hard to see why it was acclaimed but at the same time it is not hard to see why it hasn't clicked with some people. Personally think that 'Anomalisa' could have been better, and it would from humble opinion would have worked better as a short film, but its many good points are so well executed that it hard to be too hard on it. Because the visuals, music and voice acting were as wonderful as they were, even if I didn't like the film it would not have gotten less than a 4 or 5.

The film apparently was originally intended to be a short film, and it does show because some of the film does feel over-stretched with padded scenes that try to disguise thin plotting (while the sex scene was intimate and touching, it was also drawn-out, somewhat too much so).

Some of the first act in particular does fail to maintain momentum, being very draggy and uneventful in places. For example, the scenes intensely detailing Michael leaving the airport, checking into the hotel and going to the room could have either been trimmed or omitted and it would not have harmed the story at all. The ending is one that is open to interpretation, don't mind these kind of endings but this one felt sudden and abrupt, the ambiguity suggestive of Kaufmann being unsure as how to end the film.

However, 'Anomalisa' looks absolutely amazing, the stop-motion style having such a beauty and realism to it as well as imaginative in its detail. When it comes to animated films this year, stylistically 'Anomalisa' definitely stands out when it comes to uniqueness. The music score is hypnotic and dream-like while also touchingly understated.

When it comes to the script there are some very thought-provoking and poetic moments, while the narratively-linear story achieves a fine balance of the distinctively-Kaufmann psychologically surreal (such as Michael reading the letter from an ex-lover and imagining her presence and Michael's dream, which was wonderfully strange), the painfully sad and the achingly humane. While some have said that they didn't get a lot out of 'Anomalisa', while not thematically original exactly the film does say a lot profound to me of the repetitiveness of relationships, it's the inside that counts and of the necessity of believing we and our loved ones are special.

The characters are neurotic (almost on the same level of the neurose-ridden characters in a Woody Allen film), especially Michael, but there was something about the touching chemistry between Michael and Lisa and their introvertedness (coming from a fairly introverted person myself) that appealed to me even if they were deliberately not the most likable in the world. The voice acting is hard to fault.

Jennifer Jason Leigh clearly put her heart and soul into Lisa and David Thewlis is similarly terrific. Meanwhile it was truly mesmerising as to how Tom Noonan voiced all the rest of the characters (essential to the point that the film made about sounding the same, or 'same voice', which would only have worked really with one voice doing them) and still managed to make them distinct from one another, not many people can do that.

Overall, a polarising film that will mesmerise viewers but alienate others. With me, it alienated at first and it would have worked better as a short film as intended originally but mostly found it very rewarding sticking with it. 7/10 Bethany Cox