Stopmotion Review
Theatrical Movie Review - Horror/Animation
I am pretty hit or miss on movies that don't have a clear narrative. When horror is used simply to shock or cause discomfort without advancing a larger storyline or theme, it tends to put me off of the movie. Last year's Infinity Pool was a movie that didn't work for me because it seemed more interested in causing a visceral reaction than exploring its themes with any depth. I was concerned that that would be the case with Stopmotion, the new film from director Robert Morgan.
Ella Blake (Aisling Franciosi) is the daughter of the legendary stop motion artist Suzanne (Stella Gonet). Suzanne’s arthritis has become too painful for her to complete her latest film, so Ella becomes her hands, working on the movie under her mother's strict eye. When a stroke puts Suzanne in the hospital, Ella moves into an apartment that her boyfriend Tom (Tom York) finds for her to finish her mother's final project. While working, a young girl (Caoilinn Springall) stops by her apartment to see what she is doing. The girl is fascinated by the process but is unimpressed by the story. She tells Ella a new story, destroying the puppets and sets from the original in favor of something much darker and more sinister. Unfortunately for Ella, that darkness isn't confined to her film.
From the opening flashing frames to the final gruesome end, I loved this movie. It was deeply unsettling, and while it doesn't necessarily have a straightforward narrative, the themes are strong, and the medium was unique enough to keep my attention.Â
For those wondering about the title, there is stop motion in this movie, but it is not entirely filmed in that style. That said, when it is used, it is fantastic. The animators did a wonderful job giving us some genuinely terrifying moments. I wish there had been a bit more animation in the climax, as that felt like a place that could have benefited from it, but overall, I felt like its inclusion amplified the horror elements of the film.
The other filmic element that I loved about this movie was the use of sound. There is the spine-chilling sound of flesh being cut to create some of the puppets, but as we see Ella lose herself in her work, we begin to hear the squeaking of the armature in every human interaction that she has. Subtle metallic scrapes that are easy to miss but clue us in to Ella’s mental state.
Honestly, this film rested on Franciosi's shoulders, and she carried it masterfully. Her timidity and uncertainty at the start have a very Norman Bates quality that works beautifully in the context of the film. Her descent into madness is one of the better that I’ve seen because I never felt like her core character changed, which is something that happens regularly in this kind of movie.
There are a lot of movies dealing with grief right now, especially in the horror genre, and this one touches on that, but mostly, this is a film about creation and obsession and losing yourself in your work. In the capitalist grind culture that wants everyone to monetize their hobbies and work every waking moment, shaming you if you just want to find moments of joy and rest, it can be easy to see yourself consumed by your work. Stopmotion asks us to look at that in a more literal way. Maybe sometimes it’s better just to let your hobbies be hobbies.
