3.5 stars out of 5
Remember Being John Malkovich? Wow, that was fun, right? And ingenious. Then there was Adaptation, also very clever. And Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, that was pretty wild if I recall.
Synecdoche, New York: I didn’t see it, did you? I read a review and it just sounded too… I don’t know, full of itself, or something. But conceptually very interesting, at least.
Now, screenwriter (and Synecdoche director) Charlie Kaufman is back with Anomalisa, which he also co-directed. And on the surface level, it is yet another wildly creative offering: a blend of real-seeming puppets and computer animation (nominated for Best Animated Feature, no less). The subject matter, however, is pretty mundane. Which is kind of the point, but maybe too much.
We’ve got Michael Stone (voiced by British-guy David Thewlis), author/motivational speaker. He flies to Cincinnati to give a presentation at a customer-service convention. Wow, now that’s mundane! Anomalisa perfectly captures the generic traits of business travel: chatty cabbies, hotel-room key cards that take a few tries, the hum and faint glow of the ice-machine/soda machine room, etc.
It can feel really lonely on the road, and this film is a meditation on loneliness. Those long, empty hotel hallways, the lure of human connection in the lobby bar. Every character but Stone is voiced by the same actor (Tom Noonan), adding to the monotony of it all. And visually, these puppet-animations all have hinges indicating faceplates; we’re all the same — automatons just going through the motions.
In an attempt to stave off crushing solitude, Stone meets up with Lisa, convention attendee. Ah, she has a different voice! And it’s our old fave, Jennifer Jason Leigh! Sweet, innocent Lisa is an anomaly. You do the math!
If I had a problem with Anomalisa, it’s that ultimately it felt a little trite. Loneliness is bad, ah, but sometimes we’re self-creating that loneliness. This is true, sure, but the movie doesn’t have too much more to say than that.
I don’t mind that Charlie Kaufman is a downer. In fact, I’m kind of drawn to that. But maybe it’s time for him to once again work with a top-flight director (instead of directing his own stories), someone who will say no from time to time and help push him to higher levels. A little less form, a little more content.
I saw Synecdoche, New York. Was neat, barely remember- a small-ish fake complicated city building scene caught my eye.
3dollar theater last week. Tarantino’s latest.
Talked about a little with my sister over this MLK weekend. She mentioned just about all the actors in it. (She’s a movie person/ and into naming celebrities as if it matters, in the way you do Jack).
Nothing matters and what if it did, as noted celebrity John Cougar Mellencamp once said.