Comments on: Anomalisa http://waytooindie.com/review/movie/anomalisa/ Independent film and music reviews Thu, 15 Mar 2018 20:06:00 +0000 hourly 1 By: Jo http://waytooindie.com/review/movie/anomalisa/#comment-8873 Tue, 17 Nov 2015 16:07:00 +0000 http://waytooindie.com/?p=41606#comment-8873 This is one of the most sane and balanced reviews of Anomalisa that I have read. There has been a lot of over-the-top praise for this film but, when one looks at it closely, much of the positive comment relates to the animation work (the realism, the effects, attention to detail, the near-human motion quality) rather than any real artistic achievement or innovation in content. We are shown things that have been shown many times before – but this time with puppets. The psychology underlying the lead characters actions (particularly the psychology of getting them into bed) doesn’t add up or ring true.

Yes, it is Kaufman’s view of the world (his world) again- but it bears no relation to the world that many of us live in. Also the attachment of the label ‘existential’ doesn’t really enlighten. So much can be described as existential – it’s hardly innovative – but does this film open up any new interpretation or develop the concept any further? Similarly with solipsism – why even bother making a film or portray the difficulty (for Kaufman) of connecting with people if they don’t really exist in your view of the world – if everything is just your projection and nothing really exists in an objective reality? Kaufman has backed himself into a corner he can’t get out of.

I would award the film a similar score (5 out of 10) as it will have some interest for animators or Kaufman fans but, outside of the technical achievement, there is little originality or artistic merit. Sadly it is not a great piece of film-making.

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