193. TIFF: Why Stuffed, the taxidermy romance starring Jodie Comer and Harry Melling, needed to be a musical

What happens when a lonely taxidermist looking for her first human subject meets a lonely man willing to volunteer for the job? Apparently, you get a musical romance. In this episode, I'm talking about Theo Rhys's Stuffed, starring Jodie Comer as taxidermist Araminta and Harry Melling as Bernie, which had its world premiere at TIFF. The songs themselves may not be particularly memorable, but Stuffed does something I'm always hoping a movie musical will do: it actually has a reason to be a musical. I dig into how the film uses song to connect Araminta and Bernie before they've even met, to give us access to feelings they struggle to communicate to each other, and — perhaps most interestingly — when it decides not to let them sing. Plus: why I nearly walked out of this two-hour taxidermy musical several times…and why I kept sitting back down. Want to join me for my upcoming free online event on The Worst Person in the World? We'll dig into how the film lets it dawn on us that it's dawning on Julie that her life no longer fits. 👉 Join my email list at http://email.seventh-row.com, and I'll send you an invitation.