Exclusive: The New ‘Anomalisa’ Poster Invites You To Look A Little Closer
At the risk of sounding like a broken record,Anomalisais my favorite film of 2015 and one of the most unique and shattering experiences of my moviegoing life.Charlie KaufmanandDuke Johnson’s stop-motion animated drama is a once-in-a-lifetime work of art. Cynical and beautiful and heartbreaking and hilarious, it is an enthralling, painfully human tour of the emotional spectrum. It’s the kind of movie that sinks its claws into you and leaves a mark. I was lucky enough to seeAnomalisaat Fantastic Fest earlier this year and I found myself spending the rest of the festival thinking about, grappling with it, and trying to come to terms with what it had to say about its characters and their relationships. Few films pulverize your soul with such direct, expertly crafted force.
In other words, I couldn’t be happier to help premiere a new poster for the film, which casts a spotlight onDavid Thewlis' character Michael Stone. Check out the newAnomalisaposter after the jump.
One of the most astonishing aspects ofAnomalisais how it uses stop-motion to create a mundane setting and fill it with so many all-too-human, all-too-real characters. The poster below offers the tiniest glimpse of how these characters look, feel and interact with their world. You have never seen stop-motion characters move like this and you have certainly never seen them wipe steam off their bathroom windows so they can stare at their reflection with quiet self-loathing. When you actually consider what Kaufman, Johnson, and their crew had to do to achieve this effect, it boggles the mind. In an age where “computers did it” is the final answer to most moviemaking questions, the blood, sweat and tears evident in every handcrafted frame ofAnomalisarepresent a serious technological achievement.
In other words, the animation awards at the Oscars this yearcould get very interesting.
Every character inAnomalisais fascinating and boldly realized, combining powerful vocal performances from the lead actors with beautiful and expressive animation. Thewlis' Michael may be the lead character, but it’s his relationship with Lisa (Jennifer Jason Leigh, having one helluva year between this andThe Hateful Eight) that forms the heart of the film. AndTom Noonan’s performance deserves to be discovered in a theater.
In case you missed it previously, here’s the trailer forAnomalisa, which is a very canny piece of marketing. To say why would be saying too much, but we’ll just say that this preview isn’t selling everything that makes this movie such a powerful experience.
Anomalisaopens in limited release onDecember 30before expanding in January. Here’s the official synopsis:
