After a nearly decade-long absence, Charlie Kaufman, whose work includes “Being John Malkovich” and “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” has finally returned to filmmaking.  His new film, ”Anomalisa,” follows Michael Stone, a best-selling author who has seemingly lost the ability to connect with others, as he engages in a night of passionate romance with the first person for whom he has felt anything in years. 
Indeed, this movie has a sex scene, and it leaves little to the imagination—and yet, it doesn’t feel gratuitous. The scene simply registers as the culmination of everything that has happened in the film up until that point.  I linger on the subject of “Anomalisa’s” sex scene because it will highlight the fact that “Anomalisa” is animated.  Yes, you read that correctly. The film is an animated drama about interpersonal relationships featuring hardcore nudity.  Films such as these are so rare—outside of Japan, anyway—that you may not have ever even seen one. If that is the case, then I cannot think of a better film to start with than ”Anomalisa,” which takes full advantage of the medium of animation.
Unfortunately, I can’t specify how “Anomalisa” benefits from its medium without giving away the film’s surprise.  See, “Anomalisa” has a surprise, but it is not a conventional one. The protagonist doesn’t spend the movie trying to solve a mystery or answer a question. Instead, something about this movie feels off from the very first frame, and consciously or not, any given audience member will likely spend at least a third of the movie trying to figure out how they’re being gas-lit by silicon puppets. The only comparable work of fiction I can draw upon from my admittedly limited repertoire is Portal, a video game best known for spawning exactly two internet memes. 
In Portal, the player is guided by a seemingly automated voice, not unlike the one that tells you when the next redline train is approaching.  However, the voice’s agency, present from the beginning, gradually becomes clear; any moment that could be described as a “big reveal” only reveals things that the player is expected to have already deduced.  Similarly, when the surprise in ”Anomalisa” is finally made explicit, it has already stopped being a surprise.  I would daresay that the film’s surprise is even better than one in Portal because it is predicated on the medium of the work that it occupies.  If “Anomalisa” had been done as a live-action film, then the plot element in question would be plainly obvious.  However, as an animated film, “Anomalisa” is able to hide its surprise in plain sight and, in doing so, has created a wonderful, chilling effect that lasts until the moment when the audience finally realizes what, in retrospect, should have been obvious.
“Anomalisa,” like any good movie, made me feel both happy and sad in varying degrees.  More importantly, it gave me a lot to think about.  It made me think about the elements of animation that I take as a given.  It made me think about what constitutes an effective plot twist, and for that matter, any kind of plot twist. It made me think about the way that I perceive people who are more successful than me.  In fact, it made me think about the way that I see other people in general.  It’s rare that I see a movie that provokes this much thought, animated or live-action.
Digitial copies of “Anomalisa” are available on Amazon and iTunes, and DVDs and Blu-Rays will ship in May. Every dollar that goes to “Anomalisa” will incentivize the creation of more animated films outside the family-friendly mold; even if you don’t like the movie, I think that’s money well-spent.