An account of the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter, a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter.An account of the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter, a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter.An account of the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter, a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter.
- Won 4 Oscars
- 113 wins & 405 nominations total
Anders Olof Grundberg
- Kid in London Street
- (as Anders Grundberg)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaMark Ruffalo had a lot of doubts about his performance during the shoot. He often half-joked that his friend Oscar Isaac, who was filming on a nearby sound stage, was going to be called in to replace him. One day, Willem Dafoe pranked Ruffalo by taking him to a room where Isaac (who was in on the joke) was waiting. Isaac and Dafoe informed Ruffalo he was fired and, indeed, getting replaced by Isaac.
- GoofsWhen Bella returns to London to visit the dying Godwin; she gets off the carriage and closes the door with her empty right hand. However in the next immediate cut when the carriage drives away, she is now holding her luggage with the right hand. In addition in the preceding black and white scene, she is holding the bag with her left hand.
- Quotes
Bella Baxter: [on the wailing infant] I must go punch that baby.
- Crazy creditsThe opening and closing credits are shown as a frame around the image.
- Alternate versionsUK version was cut in one sex scene to secure an "18" rating. The cut(s) were made to this scene because it was in the presence of children within in the movie. Under UK law, this could be illegal and therefore required removal before being shown at cinemas or distributed within the country.
- ConnectionsFeatured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Best Movies of 2023 (2023)
Featured review
Frankenstein usurped by Don Juan; both overpowered by Look Who's Talking
Just came out of a movie theater after seeing Poor Things (Emma Stone, Mark Rufolo, Willem Dafoe). A weirdly fascinating composition of Dr. Frankenstein meeting a contemporary Figaro/Don Juan, all of whom are engrossed in Look Who's Talking (although Bulgakov's motif is unmistakably present).
Will not spoil the storyline, but the set-up alone is a great hook: a young woman decides to end her life during the ninth month of her pregnancy by jumping off London's Tower Bridge. The woman's cadaver ends up in the hands of a doctor whose only option in reviving the woman is to transplant the brain of her unborn daughter onto her. In other words, the movie begins featuring a grown woman with the cognitive level of a newborn, going through a painfully lingering cycle of enduring physical, emotional, and intellectual development. To characterize this plot as original (not to mention the execution effectiveness) would be a gross understatement.
As indicated earlier, it would be a disservice to reveal the plot. The opportunity to watch the entire film, unencumbered by foreshadowed plot twists, is truly worthwhile. What may be shared, however, are some of the random thoughts that unwittingly enter one's mind (pun intended) as the plot develops. One such thought is this: theological teachings instruct us that we are all created in G-d's image, imbued with powers of free will (i.e., the innate divine spark at risk of being extinguished by the choices we elect to make as we go through life). But our entire development phase (from the age of zero to say twenty - when we are launched into the polite society so to speak), is a wrestling match between our nature (i.e., feelings, instincts, fears, desires, temptations, tendencies, peer pressure, etc.) and the rational choices of doing the right/responsible thing, however difficult these choices appear to be.
Since Bulgakov was mentioned earlier, it may be appropriate to draw a parallel with the animal kingdom. When, for example, the mare foals, the baby horse is up on its feet within 20 minutes and well on its way toward independence, with the ability and freedom to follow its instincts, feelings, and desires. 20 minutes vs. 20 years! The bulk of these 20 years is seemingly devoted to learning how to resist the natural instincts to follow one's heart and learn to do the right thing. Watching Emma Stone's character "squeezing" the prescribed 20 years into a far more manageable window was quite a treat. Highly recommended!
Will not spoil the storyline, but the set-up alone is a great hook: a young woman decides to end her life during the ninth month of her pregnancy by jumping off London's Tower Bridge. The woman's cadaver ends up in the hands of a doctor whose only option in reviving the woman is to transplant the brain of her unborn daughter onto her. In other words, the movie begins featuring a grown woman with the cognitive level of a newborn, going through a painfully lingering cycle of enduring physical, emotional, and intellectual development. To characterize this plot as original (not to mention the execution effectiveness) would be a gross understatement.
As indicated earlier, it would be a disservice to reveal the plot. The opportunity to watch the entire film, unencumbered by foreshadowed plot twists, is truly worthwhile. What may be shared, however, are some of the random thoughts that unwittingly enter one's mind (pun intended) as the plot develops. One such thought is this: theological teachings instruct us that we are all created in G-d's image, imbued with powers of free will (i.e., the innate divine spark at risk of being extinguished by the choices we elect to make as we go through life). But our entire development phase (from the age of zero to say twenty - when we are launched into the polite society so to speak), is a wrestling match between our nature (i.e., feelings, instincts, fears, desires, temptations, tendencies, peer pressure, etc.) and the rational choices of doing the right/responsible thing, however difficult these choices appear to be.
Since Bulgakov was mentioned earlier, it may be appropriate to draw a parallel with the animal kingdom. When, for example, the mare foals, the baby horse is up on its feet within 20 minutes and well on its way toward independence, with the ability and freedom to follow its instincts, feelings, and desires. 20 minutes vs. 20 years! The bulk of these 20 years is seemingly devoted to learning how to resist the natural instincts to follow one's heart and learn to do the right thing. Watching Emma Stone's character "squeezing" the prescribed 20 years into a far more manageable window was quite a treat. Highly recommended!
helpful•3811
- alexander-e-bloch
- Feb 23, 2024
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Languages
- Also known as
- Pobres criaturas
- Filming locations
- Origo Film Studio, Budapest, Hungary(soundstages)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $35,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $34,553,225
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $661,230
- Dec 10, 2023
- Gross worldwide
- $117,463,328
- Runtime2 hours 21 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.66 : 1
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![Willem Dafoe, Mark Ruffalo, Emma Stone, Christopher Abbott, Ramy Youssef, and Jerrod Carmichael in Poor Things (2023)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNGIyYWMzNjktNDE3MC00YWQyLWEyMmEtN2ZmNzZhZDk3NGJlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTUzMTg2ODkz._V1_QL75_UX90_CR0,0,90,133_.jpg)