Stopmotion is a 2023 British live-action psychological horror thriller film directed by Robert Morgan in his feature-length debut. Morgan, who studied Animation Filmmaking in college, also wrote the screenplay with Robin King. The film has a unique and creative approach combining live action and stop motion animation. Stopmotion had its world premiere at the 2023 Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas on September 24th, 2023.

Ella Blake, a stop-motion animator struggling to control her demons after the loss of her overbearing mother, embarks upon the creation of a film that becomes the battleground for her sanity. As Ella’s mind starts to fracture, the characters in her project take on a life of their own.

The cast includes Aisling Franciosi, Caoilinn Springall, Stella Gonet, and Tom York.

Stopmotion made its debut in theaters February 23rd, courtesy of IFC Films,

THE GOOD

When I first watched the trailer for Stopmotion I was genuinely intrigued by what seemed to be a creepy and unique style of film. I was reminded of the creepy dollhouse and little figures created by Toni Collette’s character in one of my favorite horror films, Ari Aster’s terrifying gem Hereditary (our full review here). In that film Collette’s character is a miniaturist, which is essentially an artist who works with small-scale objects like little figurines, dolls, dollhouses etc. Obviously that is very different from the stop motion animation style of this film, but in Hereditary her work is deeply rooted in the film and I got the same vibe from Stopmotion. A few clips from the trailer also reminded me of the old Puppet Master films, so naturally I made my way to the theater hoping for a satisfying experience that would give me chills. So, did Stopmotion deliver the goods or fall flat when it mattered most? Keep reading to find out!

I may not have gotten the chills I was hoping for but Stopmotion did a lot of really good things and delivered one of the more unique experiences I have had with a horror film in some time. But it is not without it’s flaws which I will touch on later in the review. I’m not big into stop motion as an artistic medium but I get the appeal and I feel like it has a ton of potential when it comes to the horror genre thanks to the limitless creativity it provides, and the simple fact that the animation style in itself is creepy. Stopmotion takes full advantage of that by creating a dark and immersive horror film more than capable of making your skin crawl. I really liked how the film utilized stop motion animation which was no doubt terrifying at times. Plus you need to have a great score/soundtrack if you really want to set the tone with a horror film and Stopmotion delivers on that big time.

As far as the cast is concerned I was impressed with the performances and felt like each character seemed genuine and each provided value in their own way. Aisling Franciosi gets the majority of the screen time as she plays troubled stop motion animator Ella Blake. First of all, Franciosi is gorgeous in that mysterious and gothic sort of way. She offered a certain edge to her character and I felt like her performance set the tone for the film. Franciosi may not be a household name but the Irish-Italian actress has been making headway as of late starring in the 2018 revenge thriller The Nightingale (preview and trailer here), and the recently released Dracula film The Last Voyage of the Demeter (preview and trailer here). I think she is a very talented actress and has a bright future ahead of her. Starring alongside Franciosi is young actress Caoilinn Springall who starred in the 2020 sci-fi drama The Midnight Sky (preview and trailer here) alongside George Clooney, known only as little girl. I won’t give anything away but Springall is very important to the film and her chemistry with Franciosi proved to be invaluable. The rest of the supporting cast was solid as well including Tom York as Ella’s concerned boyfriend Tom.

The initial draw for me when I first heard about Stopmotion was without a doubt the visuals and the unique style of the film and it did not disappoint in that respect. The use of stop motion animation was heavily engrained in the film from the start and it created that immersive world within a world feel which I really liked. Ella’s imagination and creativity seems to flourish as the story unravels, making for some very unnerving and terrifying creations. I loved how creepy the stop motion characters looked and I really liked how as Ella continued down this dark path of her twisted imagination as she began to experiment with less traditional methods. I personally have a high tolerance and it takes a lot to bother me, and I will say that Stopmotion wasn’t afraid to push the envelope with some of the aspects of blood and gore, and even added in a bit of self mutilation for good measure. London born composer Lola de la Mata crushed it with the soundtrack which was easily one of my favorite elements of the film.

THE BAD

Stopmotion is one of those horror films that has all of the tools at it’s disposal but for one reason or another it can’t quite bring it all together to deliver a top-tier final product. As I talked about earlier in the review the film has a ton of great things to offer for fans of indie horror, it is just lacking in some areas. I would say that my biggest issue with the film is the lack of depth with the screenplay as it fails to build on the narrative that it promises. The stage was set perfectly in terms of the overall premise and the feel of the film, which was incredible at times thanks to creepy visuals and a fantastic score.

The story was supposed to center around Ella’s fractured relationship with her mother, a talented and demanding stop motion animator who taught her everything she knows while keeping her daughter under her thumb creatively. Going in I was made to believe Ella’s relationship with her mother would be the driving force for what would lead Ella on a dark path of no return, but to be honest there was nothing extreme or traumatic about their relationship that lead me to believe Ella was damaged goods. Even the events that lead to her mothers death were honestly bland and boring by horror film standards.

I just found it hard to buy into what was supposed to be fueling Ella’s journey into a morbid infatuation with her art. To bring up Hereditary again that family was seriously messed up for a reason thanks to a graphic and traumatic incident early in the film that left me with my mouth wide open with a “I can’t believe that just happened” look on my face, but viewers weren’t afforded such a powerful moment in this film which is unfortunate. I also felt like the final act did a disservice to the film as certain things just didn’t make sense and felt rushed. A film like Stopmotion lives and dies by the overall experience which is clearly rooted in the feel and the visuals, but for me the screenplay took away from the lasting appeal. Director Robert Morgan co-wrote the screenplay, and I read an interview where he explained that he personally has 20+ years of experience with stop motion animation so it seems to makes sense why the story took a back seat to the other elements of the film. I thought his overall idea was on point but in the end the execution was flawed.

THE VERDICT

Creepy and atmospheric indie horror aided by a chilling score and grotesque yet satisfying visuals, Stopmotion is an ambitious and creative genre entry but is ultimately derailed by a watered-down screenplay. The film does so many great things and I will watch it again for that reason, but it bums me out that it could have been so much better. Sure by the end of the film Ella has some serious issues, but how she reaches that point felt anticlimactic and lazy taking away from the effectiveness of what would become her eventual unraveling.

I still recommend checking out Stopmotion for the sheer uniqueness of the film, and if you can look past elements of the screenplay you will be very impressed with everything it has to offer. Plus casual horror fans will likely be in for more than a few sleepless nights.