Content warning: the film depicts scenes of blood, interior organs, dead corpses, graphic surgery, suicide, sexual assault, prostitution and nudity. The film “Poor Things” got some of the most mixed reviews that I have ever seen, making it arguably one of the most impactful films of the year.
Expect many scenes with full-frontal and partial nudity and lots of fairly graphic sex—between couples, friends, and sex workers and their customers. Much of the movie's violence is medical, but that includes several gory, unsettling scenes of cadavers being dissected and (in Bella's case) stabbed for fun.
Poor Things is rated R for its scenes of gore, graphic nudity, language, strong sexual content and disturbing material, according to Rotten Tomatoes' breakdown. R-rated movies are recommended for viewers 17 years and older unless accompanied by a parent or guardian.
But it also reinforces ableism by using Bella's stiff movements to create a horror-movie atmosphere. Bella also doesn't notice social cues, exaggerating a stereotype of autistic people. Some viewers may think the disability comparisons are unwarranted, but the film explicitly makes them from the beginning.
Content warning: the film depicts scenes of blood, interior organs, dead corpses, graphic surgery, suicide, sexual assault, prostitution and nudity. The film “Poor Things” got some of the most mixed reviews that I have ever seen, making it arguably one of the most impactful films of the year.
That said, Poor Things was made for adults, and depending on how old your child is, many of the scenes could seriously disturb them. It's rated R, officially, for "strong and pervasive sexual content, graphic nudity, disturbing material, gore, and language," according to the MPAA.
Animals are shown having been surgically attached to other parts of animals, for example a pig's head attached to a chicken's body. It isn't bloody/graphic, but it can be visually disturbing. Frog, seagul and there is stuffed head of a horse.
No, “Poor Things” wasn't censored (but here's why you may believe it was) As I eagerly awaited the German premiére of Yorgos Lanthimos' already acclaimed epic, “Poor Things“, rumours of censorship had already begun to circulate.
Some gory scenes of dead and dismembered bodies. References to drug use and suicide. Frequent strong scenes of a sexual nature including male and female nudity. Very strong and sexually explicit language throughout.
This is visually a very unsettling film, despite the laughs, the beauty of its sets and the insights it offers into what is truly monstrous. Poor Things is “Rated R for strong and pervasive sexual content, graphic nudity, disturbing material, gore, and language” by the MPAA.
R: Restricted, Children Under 17 Require Accompanying Parent or Adult Guardian. This rating means the film contains adult material such as adult activity, harsh language, intense graphic violence, drug abuse and nudity.
As of March 7th, the film has become available to stream on Disney+ in the UK, and on Hulu in the United States. But thanks to Disney+ and Hulu's ongoing integration, viewers in the US with the bundle have the option to watch Poor Things directly on Disney+. What's notable about this is Poor Things' graphic content.
In fact, I consider this bizarre film, with all its sex, gore and general weirdness, one of the most misogynistic movies I've watched in recent years. Based on the novel by the late Alasdair Gray, Poor Things is a subversive spin on Frankenstein.
In Genesis 9:3-4 God tells us that a person cannot cut off the limb of a living animal. In Exodus, the Ten Commandments reminds us that we are supposed to treat animals with respect and care, particularly those who work our lands.
This can be shocking and disturbing for some viewers. The film contains extensive and frequent sexual scenes. Scenes of masturbation is shown, and sex scenes often involve full frontal male and female nudity. The strongest sex scene in the film is a character's work as a prostitute.
The apple scene in Poor Things represents much more than the apparent shock value and humor it offers initially. Bella learns quickly in the apple scene of the societal restrictions and expectations around sex in general, which is widely seen as a private matter that has no place in "polite society".
Graphic surgical gore & injury detail including explicit imageries of dissections. A corpse's eyes are stabbed multiple times within comedic contexts. One person bites another's hand. A pregnant female's baby is removed from her deceased body & her brain is switched with her baby's via invasive graphic surgery.
Poor Things is a film about innocence, about discovery, about human nature. It makes us question the way we view things, the way we censor behaviour, the way we impose societal norms upon each other, and how seeing those norms disregarded can be both disturbing and exhilarating.
