Ema’s review published on Letterboxd:
👒A really good movie, even though I had a love hate relationship with it and kept changing my opinion throughout. This is definitely the kind of film that either stays with you or simply doesn’t, and it really depends on your state of mind.
🎨The cinematography and visual elements were stunning. Everything looked incredibly detailed and intentional. The Lisbon part stood out the most to me visually, it was just beautiful to watch. And the costumes left me litterally speechless!!
🐣The first half felt a bit slower and less engaging than the second, but it still had its moments. I liked the black and white part at the beginning, although I honestly thought the whole film might stay like that for a while. There’s a really nice mix of black humour to keep you going towards, and a slow emotional drama to make you rethink about the whole movie. However, I think that the movie should’ve been 20ish minutes shorter bc at one point it becomes repetitive.
💸Bella’s realization in Alexandria was one of the most emotional parts. Seeing her understand that she cannot change everything the way she hoped was genuinely painful to watch. That moment when she breaks down really stayed with me.
🧠Emma Stone was amazing in this role. This might be the best performance I have seen from her so far. Also, I can’t believe she didn’t use stunt double for nudity and sex scenes — her commitment to the character really shows.
📖The story itself is both fascinating and sad. It raises an important question about how far people are willing to go to take advantage of someone who does not fully understand the world yet. I really liked watching Bella grow, educate herself and try to build a better position for herself.
🍎At the same time, I do think there could have been less explicit content. Even though I usually do not mind it in films, here it sometimes felt unnecessary and a bit uncomfortable.
🐐The ending is what left me satisfied and overall positive about the film (and why it got 4 stars). Bella rules!!!!
🔜I’m lowkey binging Yorgos movies after this one, The Lobster review incoming soon!!
