Photo by IFC Films.
If you’re ready to be simultaneously delighted and disturbed, then you can’t miss “Memoir of a Snail,” Adam Elliot’s newest stop-motion animation feature.
The style and tone of animation picks up where Elliot left off in 2009 with “Mary and Max”—dingy and muted, with a smidge of shock value and a dollop of depression, all glued together by a quirky sort of love for the little things.
Grace (Sarah Snook) is obsessed with snails. She picked up the tradition from her mother, who died during childbirth but left some snail paraphernalia for her and her twin brother, Gilbert (Kodi Smit-McPhee). The two of them live with their paraplegic father until he passes, and then they are both thrown into opposite ends of the foster care system, each with mixed results. Grace, at least, has the fortune of meeting Pinky (Jackie Weaver), the eccentric old neighboring woman who lives her life to the fullest and serves as an example of everything Grace is not.
As we continue through Grace’s life—a bleak journey, though dotted with moments of quirky joy—we begin to see the cage that she has put herself in over the years. Grace was meant to be the everywoman, and she is easy to latch onto.
While the plot points feel a bit simplistic with forced messaging at times, it is the emotional depth of Grace’s character that really shines. If there’s one thing that can be said of an Adam Elliot film, it’s that the characters are vibrant even if the colors are not. And, of course, Snook does a phenomenal job as the central character, really capturing that bizarre mix of hopeful dreamer versus hopeless victim of circumstance.
The film is not for children, nor for the faint of heart. There are plenty of uncomfortable, disturbing and gross moments scattered throughout “Memoir of a Snail,” contrasting with its moments of sentiment and making for an altogether difficult-to-nail-down piece. And perhaps that is what makes the film so fun. In a sea of cookie-cutter films, it immediately stands out. Thank you, Adam Elliot, for not losing your sense of style.
“Memoir of a Snail” will play at Midtown Cinema in November. Change things up and catch this oddball of a film.
Midtown Cinema is located at 250 Reily St., Harrisburg. For more information, visit www.midtowncinema.com.
November Events At Midtown Cinema
Witchy Weekend
“The Witch” (2015)
Friday, Nov. 1, 9:30 p.m.
“The Witches” (1990)
Saturday, Nov. 2, 11 a.m.
“The Craft” (1996)
Saturday, Nov. 2, 9:30 p.m.
“Practical Magic” (1998)
Sunday, Nov. 3, 5 p.m.
Down in Front!
Comedy riffing
“Blood Rage” (1987)
Friday, Nov. 8, 9:30 p.m.
Saturday Morning Cartoon
“The Iron Giant” (1999)
Saturday, Nov. 9, 11 a.m.
“The Emperor’s New Groove (2000)
Saturday, Nov. 23, 11 a.m.
Sunday Doc Series
“Summer of Soul” (2021)
Sunday, Nov. 10, 2 p.m.
“Back to the Future” (1985)
Tuesday, Nov. 12, 7:30 p.m.
3rd in the Burg Movie Night
“Hedwig and the Angry Inch” (2001)
Friday, Nov. 15, 9:30 p.m.
Sunday Classic Series
“Barbarella” (1968)
Sunday, Nov. 17, 7 p.m.
“Harold and Maude” (1971)
Sunday, Nov. 24, 1 p.m.
Late Night Frights
“Evil Dead” (2013)
Friday, Nov. 22, 9:30 p.m.
“Eraserhead” (1977)
Friday, Nov. 29, 9:30 p.m.
If you like what we do, please support our work. Become a Friend of TheBurg!
