Charlie Kaufman
Anomalisa

(slight spoilers ahead)
This is why I love Cinema. Because without it, I would feel like a complete emotional illiterate. Ever since I started devouring films, I've stumbled upon movies that have this rare, magical ability to embody a way of being, a feeling that resonates with me but was, until then, elusive.
"Anomalisa" turned out to be one of those special films. A stop-motion animation film, it was released in 2015 after a troubled decade-long birth from the mind of Charlie Kaufman, who was already a screenwriter for Spike Jonze and Michael Gondry and made his directorial debut with "Synecdoche, New York," another unconventional film.
A plot as sparse as it is ingenious, fully justifying the use of animation: in the world of the famous motivational speaker Michael Stone, everyone has the same face and the same voice. During a trip to Cincinnati, he contacts an old flame seeking escape from his tedious solitude, but the encounter turns disastrous. Instead, it is another unexpected meeting with a woman who is unlike the others, with her own voice and face, that lets us experience a joy as immense as it is fleeting, an anomaly the title speaks of.
I immediately sensed the exceptional nature of this film; the stop-motion employed is characterized by extreme realism (almost grotesque, I'd say) in settings, costumes, and facial features, except for the clearly visible joints on the characters' faces, which make us think of their faces as interchangeable parts. Masks that, for Michael, represent nothing but the dreadful, flat monotony of his existence, declined in a vast group of individuals perceived as "other."
And it is precisely the theme of incomprehensibility that is perfectly dissected through this metaphor, and of the possible (but temporary) breaking down of that barrier; for anyone who has experienced truly hearing a unique voice, distinct from the crowd, angelic and salvific, this film should evoke more than a few emotional stirrings. The screenplay is so well crafted that I couldn't help but adopt Michael's viewpoint, despite the almost non-existent background; from the beginning, every expression, every gesture, reveals an empathy and internal struggle that one cannot remain indifferent to.
Apart from some delightful comedic interludes, it's the dramatic and emotional tension that dominates, along with another constant: the spontaneity of gestures and actions. Kaufman masterfully depicts the romantic approach between two human beings, exalting often imperceptible gestures and expressions, loading them with naturalness and sweetness. I never imagined I'd find the most human sex scene I've ever seen in a film made with puppets. Nor did I think I could suffer after the idyll's end. "Beauty and mortality pass and do not last," our poets said 700 years ago, but this film highlights well the rupture caused by social dynamics, without diminishing the mystery inherent in love.
The love of one night that becomes an absolute experience, a culmination that can only be followed by a relapse into social conventions (cages), into the perfect daily monotony.
Themes already tackled, yes, but not in this particular way, which, between realism and metaphor, between the inner and outer world, presents itself as powerfully human, making anomaly and defect its manifesto.
The vocal performances, directing, and Kaufman's love for detail are also applause-worthy. A gem.