Anomalisa (2015)

Comedy, Drama, Animation

Directors: Duke Johnson, Charlie Kaufman
Writer: Charlie Kaufman
Starring: David Thewlis, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tom Noonan

"A very human thought-provoking gem!"

From the gifted mind of Charlie Kaufman (Being John Malkovich, Synecdoche, New York) comes an unusual, Kafkaesque stop-motion animation aimed solely at adults.

The film follows Michael Stone, a lonely customer service expert and motivational speaker, voiced by David Thewlis, who travels to Cincinnati on a business trip, where he accidentally meets a unique woman. Michael is a man of very low sensitivity and excitement, to him everybody, including his wife and his son, sound the same (everyone in the movie is voiced by actor Tom Noonan). But all that changes when he comes across Lisa, who even though she's klutzy, bashful and not particularly attractive, fascinates him completely, due to her unique voice (Jennifer Jason Leigh).

Based on his own play from 2005 and co-directed with animator Duke Johnson, Anomalisa doesn't fall short of Kaufman's surrealist writing style, and some will consider it an anomaly in itself, probably unlike any other movie they’ve seen.

Plot summary from IMDb: Michael Stone, an author that specializes in customer service, is a man who is unable to interact deeply with other people. His low sensitivity to excitement, and his lack of interest made him a man with a repetitive life on his own perspective. But, when he went on a business trip, he met a stranger - an extraordinary stranger, which slowly became a cure for his negative view on life that possibly will change his mundane life.

Awards: Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 18 wins & 66 nominations.
Runtime: 90 min
R