Poor Things

[Prrambulate]

This comes out in a few days - some people might have seen it already? Looking forward to the discussion on this.

Saw it today with DH, was excited anyway as we love The Great and The Favourite but this was a step up.
Emma Stone was phenomenal.
The prostitution scenes I saw as her beginning thinking see if about her. Great sex with Mark Ruffalo, funny sex with the first side and some cash then she starts to see it's about them not her. She tries to gain some agency over it with the story and the jokes but mainly it's about the men having their needs caterer for, a lesson many of us learn before we learn how to take control.

I thought they'd transplant God's brain so he had a second chance but I liked it anyway

The Barbican has a small, free, exhibition of the costume which is worth seeing.

Just highlighted that I don't like men much 😂

I saw it last night. I don't like that sort of "quirky" film. I thought Emma Stone was great. Mark Ruffalo was ok but his accent was all over the place.

Agree about the armpit hair!! You can see her pubes but not her armpits!!

I'm not sure what the message is. I agree it's a film / story of men about a woman. The only area she has agency over is sex (and learning I guess). I didn't get any "message" from it.

Visually stunning.

The general public are slowly being groomed into accepting children can be part of sex and this film is another step on the way. The gothic and breathtaking style of it acts as the lube to help our brains accept their horrific agenda

It was interesting. Bit too long. Loved Emma Stone in it. Bound to win awards and the scenery and that was very pretty

Did find mark ruffalo accent a bit all over the place at times!

Yes I can't believe this ran when hollywood is clamping down on pedos etc

When the woman who ran the brothel said "men aren't interested in women my age, not even for free" it was just so so grim.
Maybe it was trying to be as grim as possible

SPOILERS

I liked it overall and thought the development of her sex life was ok and not particularly male-gaze as the nudity was often quite detached rather than "sexy" and did feel very much part of the storyline. most of the nudity in the brothel did make me uncomfortable though - wasn't convinced it really played a part in that broader storyline and most of it wasn't necessary.

I couldn't imagine taking my clothes off on camera full stop but the number of people that Emma Stone had to be wrapped around while naked/half-naked made me 😱I couldn't help but think how weird it must have been to make the film. normally when a major film star makes a film that involves nudity like that they talk about the relationship/trust they had with the other actor, etc but she had scenes like that with folk who were basically just a step above extras!

I thought both Godwin's backstory and the reveal as to why she had attempted suicide were kind of necessary to stop it coming across as "man = creator, woman = subject". and Emma Stone's performance was phenomenal, you could see that development/maturity of her shifting from child to adult simply through how she moved and the expressions on her face - not sure i've ever seen anyone act "intellectual development" before.

I've been mulling the film over and have some questions. I haven't read the book yet, so perhaps I would find the answers in there.

how does post-implant Bella manage to avoid pregnancy?
why doesn't she have/mention periods? For an unflinching film, this seems odd omission.
if her hair is growing at a crazy rate, why doesn't the rest of her body hair follow suit?
what was the point of the oral sex scene with her friend?

I've been busily defending the film and saying that it's not seen from the male gaze, but the above questions are making me wonder now.

This critical review (one of the rare ones) does mention some of the issues you raised:

https://www.vulture.com/article/poor-things-review-a-banal-rendition-of-sexual-freedom.html

I loved it. The ending was brilliant!

I saw this last night and absolutely loved it

I can't believe it. As parents shouldn't we be more vigilant and critical of the received mainstream message looking beyond the flashy visuals and an apparent brilliance of the leading actor? As I cannot express it better myself, here's what some others said about the film:

'There’s a lot of sex in this movie. This sex is usually played as comedy given euphemistic phrases like “furious jumping.” To borrow a line from Arrested Development, “the mere fact you call it that tells me you’re not ready.” And Bella isn’t! She’s a child, and a child can’t consent. Under the parameters of the film, all the sex Bella has with men is nonconsensual. It’s very reminiscent of Wonder Woman 1984 (Jenkins, 2020) except with that film, everyone was quick to call it out and say, “hey, there’s no informed consent going on here.” And yet with Poor Things, this backlash hasn’t been there or certainly hasn’t been as pronounced.'

'Turned loose in the Technicolor world of rococo sets as lavish as they are loony, Bella’s craving for more sex leads to an experimental plummet into sex work, which gives Emma Stone a buffet of opportunities to spread open her legs and reveal more than her acting ability. Degradation, sadness and horror—she embraces every negative emotion stark naked, devouring raw oysters and rutting like a pig. This is acting? In an intense orgy of gluttony and self-indulgence that has driven a lot of reviewers to foam with preposterous platitudes.'

'The movie is an exploitation, not only of Bella but of Emma Stone. The fact that Stone is being exploited willingly and may even win an Oscar for it doesn’t ameliorate the situation. It just makes it one more chapter in a very old story.'

Oh God. Have you actually seen the film?
I doubt it.

She produced the film and was key in developing it, so if you want to criticise it/her then feel free but don't take her agency away by suggesting she was exploited...

@MoneyRiots1999 That's pretty OTT - have you actually seen the film? I don't like it as much as others here but reviews like that are just ludicrous.

how does post-implant Bella manage to avoid pregnancy?

I assumed she'd had a hysterectomy when Godwin did the c section. But probably left in the ovaries and cervix otherwise where did the libido and orgasms come from?
It did annoy me that her naked body had obviously never been pregnant (no sagging/ no stretch marks)

why doesn't she have/mention periods? For an unflinching film, this seems odd omission.

As above.

if her hair is growing at a crazy rate, why doesn't the rest of her body hair follow suit?

Yes it was ridiculous that she was feasting on all those custard pies, not exercising but remaining rake thin over months.

what was the point of the oral sex scene with her friend?

They were developing a lesbian relationship? It's very common for ex prostitutes to become lesbians.

It also showed sex for pleasure rather than for a man's benefit.

Emma Stone has been pregnant so it may just be she doesn't have stretch marks/sagging after a certain period of time.

Wow I'm amazed she's been pregnant. I was convinced she hadn't been from all those nude scenes!

I didn't like it either. I loved the steam punk aesthetic, but I hated the way it portrayed its female lead - so patronising. It seemed like a male fantasy, which is fair enough I guess, but not something that I could find enjoyable.

I get what you're saying and really agree with you. I don't mind seeing sex scenes on film but this did feel exploitative of both the character and the performer playing her. The fact that she is a child in a woman's body makes the fact that we are watching her developing sexuality voyeuristic. If an actual child was playing the role there is no way it would be acceptable to watch them masturbate. So, for me, even though there is a kind of distancing in that she has a woman's body I just can't get past the fact that she is actually a child.

@Ramalangadingdong And how grim is it that that would be a male fantasy.

This movie was bizarre. It wants you to think it's empowering, but it's just gross because we are seeing someone who is mentally a child having sex, which is by definition abuse.

Yes, I agree. Saw it today and love it.