An Examination of “Poor Things” and its Ableist Themes
The 2023 film “Poor Things” by Yorgos Lanthimos is based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Alasdair Gray. The movie fuses sci-fi, horror, and comedy in a flickering attempt at feminist satire. Though it received huge applause and the same number of Oscar nominations, the ableism in its representation of disabled characters was highly criticized.
While Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” did the same for the subjective experience and growing awareness of a character written off as a “monster,” “Poor Things” does it better. Whereas “Frankenstein” is a text not typically considered inherently ableist, “Poor Things” uses prosthetics to simulate facial differences and explicitly compares Bella Baxter, a character with a baby’s brain in an adult’s body, to people with intellectual disabilities. It has also been criticized by disabled people themselves, notably by Erica Mones and Andrew Gurza, for continuing to feed negative stereotypes.
-disabled author Carly Findlay also criticized the film for its reliance on makeup and prosthetics to portray Dr. Godwin Baxter’s facial differences, the classic Hollywood trope that people with facial and limb differences so often call out. In the film, Dr. Godwin Baxter is a Frankenstein-esque figure, as his name might suggest—he created Bella. “God,” she calls him.
The opening shots of the film have Bella, played by Emma Stone, making discordant noises on the piano with her hands and feet, wordless, expressing tension and unease that the score by Jerskin Fendrix bolsters.
All in all, “Poor Things” has a quite complex story to tell, with genre and thematics, but the execution has been riddled with ableist tropes, effectively harming audience and critical reception alike.
I have cerebral palsy, and I write a good deal about how non-disabled people marginalize disabled people’s bodies and movements as creepy or uncanny. Yes, I’m acutely aware of this, and the film brings attention to it. At the same time, it feeds into ableism by using Bella’s stiff motions to set up an atmosphere of horror-movie dread. Bella also doesn’t pick up on social cues, dipping into a stereotype about autistic people.
Some audiences may think that it is not valid to make comparisons between disabilities, but the film actually does this itself from its very opening scenes. For example, when Godwin’s colleague Max McCandles first lays eyes on Bella he says, “What a very pretty [r-word]!” Godwin explains that her “mental age” is far below her “physical age.”
Godwin later tells McCandles in private how he created Bella. He does not tell Bella herself until near the end of the film. Victoria Blessington was pregnant, nearly at the very end of her pregnancy, when she committed suicide. It was Godwin who found her body, and so he assumed that a person who is committing suicide does not want to be revived; his rationale for experimenting on her establishes that men are taking away women’s agency paternalistically. Thus Godwin removed and discarded Victoria’s brain, replaced it with the brain of her baby, and reanimated her body with electricity.
orgos Lanthimos’ 2023 film “Poor Things,” adapted from Alasdair Gray’s 1992 novel, tackles themes of sci-fi, horror, and comedy while attempting feminist satire. Despite its acclaim and multiple Oscar nominations, the film has been critiqued for its ableist elements, particularly in its portrayal of characters with disabilities.
Drawing parallels to Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein,” “Poor Things” explores the subjective experience and growing awareness of a character dismissed as a “monster.” However, unlike “Frankenstein,” which many do not consider inherently ableist, “Poor Things” uses prosthetics to simulate facial differences and explicitly compares Bella Baxter, a character with a baby’s brain in an adult’s body, to individuals with intellectual disabilities. This portrayal has been criticized by disabled individuals, including Erica Mones and Andrew Gurza, for perpetuating harmful stereotypes.
Carly Findlay, a disabled author, also condemned the film’s use of makeup and prosthetics to depict Dr. Godwin Baxter’s facial differences, highlighting an old Hollywood trope often criticized by those with facial and limb differences. In the film, Dr. Godwin Baxter (played by Willem Dafoe) is a Frankenstein-esque figure, with his name reflecting his role as Bella’s creator. Bella addresses him as “God,” underscoring his perceived omnipotence.
The film’s opening scenes depict Bella (Emma Stone) hitting dissonant piano notes with her hands and feet, unable to speak, creating a tense and unsettling mood complemented by Jerskin Fendrix’s dissonant soundtrack.
In summary, while “Poor Things” aims for a complex narrative blending various genres and themes, its execution has been marred by ableist tropes, drawing criticism from both audiences and critics alike.
Ableism in “Poor Things” Compared to “Frankenstein”
While “Poor Things” and Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” both involve the creation of life through unconventional means, there are significant differences that make “Poor Things” more overtly ableist. In “Frankenstein,” the creature is assembled from adult corpses, resulting in an entity with an adult brain. Conversely, Bella Baxter in “Poor Things” has a baby’s brain in an adult body, literalizing a harmful myth about disabled people—that adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities possess child-like brains.
Ivanova Smith, a self-advocate with intellectual and developmental disabilities, has long championed the slogan “we all grow up” to combat such misconceptions. The notion of “mental age” has historically been used to strip disabled individuals of their agency, including their sexual autonomy. This is a dangerous myth, as it falsely suggests that a person’s cognitive development does not align with their physical age.
In “Poor Things,” Bella’s character embodies this myth within her steampunk reality, making the film’s sexual content particularly uncomfortable. Scenes of Bella masturbating, engaging in sex, and even performing sex work are troubling given her supposed cognitive state. Her interactions with her creator, Godwin Baxter, and her inquiry about being her own mother and daughter further complicate the narrative. This premise evokes themes of incest and child sexual abuse, especially highlighted when Victoria’s husband, Alfie Blessington, threatens Bella with sexual violence and genital mutilation.
Alfie’s disbelief in Bella’s true identity (his daughter’s brain in his wife’s body) and his assumption that she has a different disability (such as amnesia) exemplifies his sense of ownership over her, underscoring the ableist undertones of the film.
Conclusion
“Poor Things” uses ableist tropes that reduce the complexity of disabled experiences to simplistic and harmful stereotypes. Unlike “Frankenstein,” which explores the existential plight of a creature made from adult parts, “Poor Things” perpetuates damaging myths about intellectual disabilities, highlighting the need for more nuanced and respectful representations in media.
