Charlie Kaufman has long been an original in Hollywood. As a scriptwriter he has been nominated for
a trio of Oscars — Being John Malkovich, Adaptation and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless
Mind (winning for this 2004 film) — but his latest offering garnered
him his fourth Oscar nomination, not as a writer, but as the producer of one of
the five Best Animated Film contenders.
The film in question is Anomalisa, which is an adaptation of
his own stage play from 2005. The stage
play was written under the pseudonym of Francis Fregoli, which, in turn, was a
clever spin on the subject of the play itself (the Fregoli Delusion
disorder).
Now everyone with an Oscar ballot knew that Inside
Out was a lock for Best Animated Film.
That’s just the way things work.
But so original is Anomalisa as a film — unique;
special — that it really deserved its own category. Indeed, Kaufman felt that the only person
best capable of handling the directing efforts was himself and completely went
the “indie” route via a Kickstarter campaign to raise the necessary funds to
finance the project.
It was completed after two arduous years and finally made
its festival debut at the Telluride Film Festival in September of last
year. It was promptly snapped up by
Paramount for both theatrical and home entertainment distribution.
Word arrived this past week that Paramount Home Media will
be releasing Anomalisa as both DVD and Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack offerings on May
3.
The ARR for that street date is 125 days and domestic ticket
sales for the film’s limited major metro theatrical run currently stands at
$2.7 million.
What is important to note about Anomalisa is that it was
a Best Animated Feature contender — lots of visibility for that — but its
widest theatrical release was only 169 screens nationwide. That means that virtually (speaking) no one
has seen the film … which brings the May 3 DVD and Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack debut
from Paramount Home Media as the first chance for most consumers, especially
fans of Kaufman’s work, to enjoy this incredible film.
The gist of the story is Michael (voiced by David Thewlis —
as Remus Lupin in the Harry Potter film series) is a
well-renowned writer and “customer service” expert, who, sadly, suffers from
the Fregoli Delusion disorder. This
causes him to see everyone around him as the exact same person, with the exact
same voice (all voiced by Tom Noonan).
This all changes while in Cincinnati at a conference when he
hears a voice that is different from everyone else and becomes infatuated with
the woman speaking those golden tones.
Her name is Lisa (voiced by Jennifer Jason Leigh), a plain jane with a
facial scar, but Michael finds her ravishing.
Is he about to have a breakthrough? Or, a breakdown!! That’s the fun of this mesmerizing film … be
sure to check Anomalisa out on May 3.
As to bonus goodies, there are a trio of featurettes that
are exclusive to the Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack — “None of Them are You: Crafting
Anomalisa,” “Intimacy in Miniature” and “The Sound of Unease.”
