Tracker Pixel for Entry

​Kaufman and Johnson invite you to stay at a special hotel in “Anomalisa”

Cinema | February 4th, 2016

WARNING: Do not read until after you have seen “Anomalisa”

Like so many of the curious, distinctive places imagined and created for his films, the universe of Charlie Kaufman’s “Anomalisa” is simultaneously familiar and strange, recognizable and alien, inviting and terrifying.

Based on Kaufman’s 2005 play, the film adaptation is co-directed by Kaufman and stop-motion practitioner Duke Johnson, and has the distinction of being the first R-rated movie to receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature.

Even at a tidy 90 minutes, “Anomalisa” is on several levels as thought-provoking as Kaufman’s “Synecdoche, New York,” the polarizing cult film that also grapples with questions of desire, self-worth, cognition, and identity.

“Anomalisa” follows speaker and customer service author of “How May I Help You Help Them?” Michael Stone (David Thewlis) during a one-night engagement in Cincinnati.

In a series of scenes that unfold mostly in real time, Michael arrives at a hotel called the Fregoli, another of Kaufman’s frequently deployed linguistic/terminological Easter eggs, this one a reference to the psychiatric delusion that multiple individuals are actually just one person who can change appearance. Francis Fregoli was also Kaufman’s nom de plume on the original play script.

At the hotel, every banal encounter unfolds with a sense that there is something else as uncanny as the head and facial designs of the fascinating 3D printed puppets. But the intricately fabricated sets and armatures are only one facet of a central auditory conceit that informs any reading of the cinematic text.

Some critics have opted to refrain from discussing what Richard Brody describes as a “coup de theatre too clever to divulge,” but the “technical gimmick” of using Tom Noonan as the voice of every character Michael encounters until he hears the unique and euphonious Lisa (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is the aspect of “Anomalisa” that will have you reflecting for days.

Michael’s excitement at hearing Lisa distinctly from all others, including his wife and his child, leads to some of the movie’s most discussed touches, including a lovely moment in which Lisa sings an intimate rendition of “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” that makes Michael’s eyes sparkle (an absolute blessing in disguise when the filmmakers were not able to license “My Heart Will Go On,” which was used in the play).

But the more time we spend, the greater our discomfort at Michael’s “condition.” An unsettling late callback to a scene in which Michael spots an unusual mechanical sex doll while looking for a gift to bring home to his son is pure Kaufman – a hall of mirrors in which we watch an inanimate object regard an automaton and start to wonder whether we are all Michaels.

Kaufman deliberately resists the kind of homogeneity and polish that would more smoothly align the sympathies of the audience with Michael. Instead, the character’s selfishness, uncertainty, and privilege are displayed in such a way to allow for a wide range of readings and interpretations of authorial intent.

Is Michael a bad person? Are we all bad people? Thewlis, Noonan, and Leigh, reprising their roles from the Theater of the New Ear production, are all so good that once you see “Anomalisa” you might believe the members of the Academy nominated Ms. Leigh for the wrong movie.  

Recently in:

Press release Celebrate Dinosaur Day on Thursday, Oct. 16 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the North Dakota Heritage Center & State Museum (612 E Boulevard Ave. in Bismarck). This free, family-friendly program is open to all ages. A…

By Michael M. Millermichael.miller@ndsu.edu The Northwest Blade, from Eureka, South Dakota, published a wonderful story in August 2020. It’s called “Granddaughter keeps Grandmother’s precious chamomile seeds,” by Cindy…

Sunday, October 19, 10 a.m.Buffalo River State Park, 565 155th St. S., Glyndon, MNHosted by the Red River Valley Chapter of Herbalists Without Borders at Buffalo River State Park for a fun fall day full of flora. (Say that three…

By John Strandjas@hpr1.com Yes, we know, everywhere you look, the world situation is mental. It’s almost inescapable just how tenuous life’s circumstances are. And how they are mostly — pretty much entirely — out of our…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comWill we be banging or whimpering at the end of the American empire?T.S. Eliot’s poem “The Hollow Men” accurately portrays the end of most empires in his first lines: “We are the hollow men/…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…

By Rick Gion and Nichole Hensenrickgion@gmail.com The wait is finally over. Those who have visited Nichole’s Fine Pastry & Cafe lately know about the recent major additions and renovations that have taken place over the past…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.com Dakotah Faye is a hip-hop artist from Minot, North Dakota, and he’s had a busy year. He’s released two albums. This summer he opened for Tech N9ne in Sturgis and will be opening for Bone…

By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.com The multiple meanings of the title location in Mercedes Bryce Morgan’s “Bone Lake” cover the sex and death spectrum that will flummox Diego (Marco Pigossi) and Sage (Maddie Hasson) as…

By HPR staffsubmit@hpr1.com Mark the first weekend of October on your calendar. It’s the weekend of the Studio Crawl, which takes us all on a wonderful, metro-wide tour of our talented (and often wacky) arts community. On October…

Press release“Shakespeare with a sharpened edge.” To launch its 2025 – 2026 season, Theatre NDSU is thrilled to team up with Moorhead-based organization Theatre B to perform a co-production of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and…

By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…

Press Release As Breast Cancer Awareness Month begins, Essentia Health is highlighting an innovative — and recently expanded — program that brings early breast cancer detection services to rural communities. Essentia’s mobile…

By Alicia Underlee NelsonProtests against President Trump’s policies and the cuts made by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) are planned across North Dakota and western Minnesota Friday, April 4 and…

By Vern Thompsonvern.thompson@rocketmail.comMoral accountability and the crisis of leadership  As a recovering person living one day at a time for the last 35 years, I have learned not to judge others because I have not walked in…