REVIEW: ‘Stopmotion’ features the horrors of one’s own creation
Photo: Aisling Franciosi stars as Ella Blake, a stop-motion animator, in Stopmotion. Photo courtesy of IFC Films / Provided by Obscured Pictures with permission.
An early candidate for best horror movie of 2024 is IFC Films’ Stopmotion, the Robert Morgan-directed feature that descends into some dark, dizzying places. If it’s not the best horror movie so far, it’s certainly the most unsettling and off-putting. The story surrounds the difficulties faced by Ella Blake (Aisling Franciosi), a stop-motion animator who is attempting to escape the overbearing shadow of her tyrannical mother, according to press notes. After her mother dies, Ella decides to complete one more stop-motion film, a work in progress that turns into a scary endeavor.
Nothing is what it seems in Morgan’s uncomfortable, yet gripping film, which was written by Morgan and Robin King. At first, this appears to be a horror story in which the creator (Ella) must face off against her creations (the stop-motion characters, including a cyclops), but honestly the narrative doesn’t follow any easy routes. Instead, Ella begins to descend into an intimate anarchy, one that may be real or imaginary, and as the descent continues, she faces unspeakable horrors, including one body horror scene that is excruciating to watch.
Franciosi is a marvel in the central role. She is ever-present, never leaving the screen for the movie’s 93-minute running time. She holds the hurt and pain from her abusive mother in her performance, even when her partner (Tom York) tries to snap her out of her struggle with sanity. Stella Gonet has limited time as Ella’s mother, but she’s able to effectively convey a warped parenting style that may remind viewers of Piper Laurie’s unforgettable turn in Carrie.
Stopmotion, which is now playing in theaters and will be released on Shudder in May, is creepy and complex. At first, the story feels like a drama with some fantastical, eerie moments of a woman existing in two worlds: the real one and a fantasy one featuring puppets that are moved ever so slightly to produce that stop-motion effect. But the last third of the movie is when the horror screws are turned, and one realizes that Ella is unable to escape what she has created, what she has thought and what her mother has instilled in her.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Stopmotion (2024). Directed by Robert Morgan. Written by Morgan and Robin King. Starring Aisling Franciosi, Stella Gonet and Tom York. Running time: 93 minutes. Rated R for violent/disturbing content, gore, some language, sexual material and brief drug material. Currently running in theaters, streaming on Shudder starting May 31.
