Anomalisa (2015)

Anomalisa is a small, intimate stop‑motion drama about loneliness, perception, and the desperate search for connection. The story follows Michael Stone, a successful but emotionally numb author and motivational speaker who finds everyone around him indistinguishable and uninteresting — including his wife and son. While on a business trip to Cincinnati, he encounters Lisa, a warm, awkward woman who suddenly appears as the first person who seems genuinely different. Their brief, charged encounter forces Michael to confront his isolation and the illusions he’s built around other people. Seeing the film is a distinctive experience: the handcrafted stop‑motion puppets and meticulously detailed sets give the world a tactile, slightly uncanny quality that mirrors Michael’s interior life. Most secondary characters are intentionally voiced in a uniform way to underline the protagonist’s sense that everyone else is the “same person,” so Lisa’s distinct voice and presence feel startlingly real. The pacing is quiet and observational, alternating dry, darkly comic moments with painfully honest, awkward intimacy. Emotionally, the film is bittersweet and often unsettling. Viewers can expect an introspective, character‑driven piece rather than plot action: it’s more about mood, small gestures, and the collapse of fantasy than about tidy resolutions. The tone mixes melancholy, subtle humor, and acute embarrassment, and the movie doesn’t shy away from adult themes — depression, marital dissatisfaction, and sexual longing. If you watch Anomalisa, you’ll come away moved (and likely a bit unnerved) by its humane, uncompromising look at how we see others and how we fail to be seen. It’s a gorgeously crafted, quiet meditation best suited to viewers who appreciate psychological depth, formal inventiveness, and emotionally honest storytelling.

Actors: David Thewlis, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tom Noonan

Directors: Duke Johnson, Charlie Kaufman

Runtime: 90 min

Genres: Animation, Comedy, Drama

6.9 /10 88 /100 7.2 /10 7.6 /10