The first scene of Poor Things shows Emma Stone’s character free-falling off a bridge, and shortly thereafter, we the audience fall into the movie’s strange and wonderful world. The film is directed by the innovative Yorgos Lanthimos (The Favorite, The Lobster), so it’s no surprise that the voyage we are about to take is wholly unlike what we’d find in any other movie.

On the surface it’s a story of a Bella Baxter (Stone), a seemingly ordinary woman with an extraordinary origin story, growing into the person she wants to be, and the men and women in her life (Willem Dafoe, Ramy Youssef, Mark Ruffalo, Suzi Bemba, Hanna Schygulla) who hinder or help her as she goes. But there is so much more going on in this voyage of self-discovery, so here is an A to Z primer (well, almost) of the elements that make this one of the year’s best movies.

A is for Adventure.
Bella yearns to know more, do more, and see more, and once she gets a taste of the world outside her home with her father/god figure, Godwin Baxter (Dafoe) she is implacable. She defies Godwin’s wishes and runs off with the caddish Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo.)

B is for Brain
There’s a nod to the Frankenstein story in Poor Things, and without divulging too much, it can be said that Bella’s brain function figures heavily into her character development. Before she goes out seeking enlightenment, she must first learn to do a lot more things. B is also for baby, but it’s too much of a spoiler to say anything more.

C is for Color
Robbie Ryan’s cinematography uses color – or the lack of it- to great effect in this movie. The first third of the movie (give or take, minus some flashbacks) is set in a luminous black and white, and at a certain point in her development, the movie lapses into color – and what a glorious palette. The super-saturated tones he and Lanthimos use in every scene make for a gorgeous visual experience – one that ideally should be seen in a movie theater, not on a home screen.

D is for Discordance
Poor Things throws a lot at the viewer, designed to emphasize the sheer oddness of it all. From the plunking, out-of-tune notes of the musical accompaniment, to the irregular geometry of Godwin Baxter’s facial features, to the frequent use of a fish-eye lens that makes the audience feel almost like voyeurs into the Baxter family’s chaotic home life early on in the film – it’s all designed to announce that we are to expect the unexpected. D is also for dance; look for a balletic (though disjointed) performance by Stone and Ruffalo.

E is for Experimentation
Godwin Baxter is a mad scientist who, after creating a few whimsical animal hybrids, begins on his most ambitious project yet: a human woman. But he knows he needs help, so he asks one of his surgical students, Max McCandles (Youssef) to assist him in logging Bella’s progress. At first taken aback by his assignment, he soon grows enchanted by Bella.

F is for Fashion
Every design element in this film has been fine-tuned for maximum wow factor, and Holly Waddington’s costume design is delightfully on point. Once Bella is allowed to express her fashion sense, she starts sporting eye-catching puffed sleeves over suggestive bodices, period-defying tap pants instead of skirts, petticoats and pantaloons, and a signature color scheme that includes daffodil yellows, sky blue, and coral pieces. That is, of course, when Bella is clothed. We also see Bella’s sartorial choices become less conspicuous as she grows more serious about her life’s purpose.

G is for God
Bella calls Godwin Baxter her God, which is a rather telling affectation.

H is for Humanity
The childlike Bella has a lot to learn about how the world works, and though she defies convention by simply not acknowledging the social mores of the day, she cannot deny the burgeoning realization that this world has good and evil, wealth and poverty, and that she is in a way responsible to her fellow beings.

I is for Imprisonment
Bella chafes at any attempt to rein in her impulses or desires, and she especially won’t be confined by any strictures on her behavior or attempts to curtail her freedom even under the guise of love and protection.

J is for Journey
Every movie’s got one, and the journey in Poor Things is both literal, in that Bella and Duncan embark on a glorious tour of Europe and the Mediterranean, and figurative as Bella fights for self-determination.

K is for Knowledge
Bella becomes a voracious reader, and the more Bella learns, the more she wants to share with like-minded people, seeking them out everywhere she goes, like on a cruiser or in a brothel.

L is for Love
Love is just another tie that binds for Bella, until she finds someone who does not equate love with ownership. But there is also the love she feels for Godwin, and the passion for exploration she feels.

M is for Money
Once Bella finally understands that money makes the world go around, she finds she needs funds, taking her on an unexpected side quest.

N is for Nudity
There’s a lot of it, male and female, and especially for Stone, who makes the most of her sexual awakening and bares more than her soul in quite a few scenes.

P is for Prostitution
When in Paris, Bella makes the acquaintance of a Madame, played by Kathryn Hunter, and the like-minded Toinette (Bemba), who offer her two very distinct philosophical lessons that have nothing to do with sex.

R is for Ruffalo
Hands down, the standout performance of Poor Things comes from Mark Ruffalo, who plays Duncan as a cold-hearted Lothario until he is utterly transformed by Bella. Bella unmakes Wedderburn, giving Ruffalo a chance to play comic, tragic, dramatic and absurd, sometimes all in the same scene. His performance as a converted Casanova is simply brilliant.

S is for Steampunk
Production design by Shona Heath and James Price add a steampunk sensibility to their delightful depictions of Bella’s era – look for a flying dirigible systems overhead and an (almost) horseless carriage that Godwin uses to get around London.

T is for Travel
As already detailed, Bella’s journey takes her from London across Europe to Alexandria, meeting interesting new characters like those played by Jerrod Carmichael and Hanna Schygulla, but of special note are the interstitial title cards announcing each of Bella’s new locations. They are fantastical images of Bella moving through a dreamlike landscape and are even more examples of the visual beauty of this film.

W is for Willem Dafoe
Dafoe also shines as a complex Victor Frankenstein type, though he tempers his hubris with bouts of compassion and even humor, albeit in a more deadpan fashion, unlike Ruffalo’s hilarious but histrionic tantrums. Godwin Baxter was once more sinned against than sinning, and the script by Tony McNamara (adapted from the book of the same title by Alasdair Gray) allows him a lot of grace and finds the character’s beauty under a scarred visage.

Y is for Yorgos Lanthimos
What else would it be for? Lanthimos ties together lyrical dialog, compelling story, stellar acting, stunning cinematography and settings along with a boatload of humor, whimsy and quirky x-treme zaniness (in case you were wondering what happened to Q, X and Z) to make it one of the best movies of 2023. Poor Things is in wide release in theaters now.