This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the movie being covered here wouldn’t exist.
The fourth and final iteration of Wes Anderson’s short adaptations of Roald Dahl stories, Poison, may just have been his best. At 17 minutes, it is still much shorter than the first of the four shorts he released The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar. Yet, somehow, Anderson was able to capture so much more in such a short time frame.
In Poison, Dev Patel stars as Woods and Benedict Cumberbatch star as Harry, two Englishmen in India. Cumberbatch’s Harry discovers that he has a deadly poisonous snake resting on his stomach under his books and shirt, and Woods, frantic to try to save his life, enlists the help of Dr. Ganderbai (Ben Kingsley) an Indian doctor.
What impressed me most about the work in this particular short is in how well Anderson and company are able to convey a real sense of urgency and danger in such a short time. Cumberbatch’s real ability to convey his character’s dread, Patel’s ability to convey Woods’ sense of urgency and scared nature, and Kingsley’s ability to be the calming sense of expertise that a doctor in this situation all impressed me equally incredibly.
Anderson continued the style that he employed in the previous three shorts, with quick exposition delivery and a deliberate cinematography and set design that resembled the work of a play. However, it seemed to work the best in Poison.
It was simple enough to feel like a stage play. The sense of urgency in the plot paired well with the hyper-speed line delivery. It just all worked together in a weird sort of harmony.
The plot, while simple enough, was worth an adaptation. Although I do wish that I had been able to see more creative freedom from Anderson here. He instead opted to play it safe in his style in a direct, word for word adaptation of the original story. Although, this gripe is something I carried for all four of his Roald Dahl short film adaptations.
Final Thoughts
Poison is an interesting enough short film that definitely deserved to be adapted for the screen. The combination of the performances, the style and the sense of urgency and dread in the plot blended together well. If you were to watch any of these shorts from Wes Anderson, take 15 minutes and watch this one.
4/5
This review is the fourth in a series of four reviews for Wes Anderson’s Roald Dahl adaptations released from September 27-30, 2023. To read the other reviews, click HERE. To check out more of our reviews, click here.
