WHAT’S IT ABOUT
A talented stop-motion animator becomes consumed by the grotesque world of her horrifying creations — with deadly results.
MOVIESinMO REVIEW
The opening scene shows a talented artist named Ella getting ordered by an older woman on how to position a horrible-looking doll for a stop-motion project. The older woman is later revealed to be Ella’s mother. During dinner, their interactions are odd, as it is clear there’s a problem. When the mother is hospitalized, you still feel lost, considering there’s very little conversation to explain anything. And the times they talk are more cryptic than an Indiana Jones clue. With the mother out of the picture, the submissive Ella decides to make her own stop-motion film. Being subservient, Ella fights with the notion of creating her own, but as the film continues, Ella’s grip on reality loosens, and she begins to torture her own body to give life to her dolls. The movie removes any distinction between the desire to create and the will to destroy. Initially, there is something liberatory to the experience as she no longer has to contend with her mother being there controlling her every move. At this point in the movie, my mind was exhausted. I wanted so much for someone to throw me a bone and tell me what the hell was going on. When I go to the movies, I want to be entertained. I’m not entertained if I need to “think” about every aspect of a movie instead of just sitting back and enjoying it. Stopmotion is a psychological thriller with the presentation of a grade schooler just learning how to structure a sentence. This entire movie is guesswork. In other words, it’s up to the audience to figure out everything. Nothing is as it seems; every scene is a euphemism filled with idioms and metaphors. I felt like I was forced to watch a student’s final film project. Final word of advice to new film grads – either learn how to properly produce a film in your specific genre or keep your “art” at the film festivals exclusively.
OUR RATING – A PRETENTIOUS 0