The above is something that one could say about pretty much every stop-motion film from the Brothers Quay, but it comes to life here even moreso than other works by them. "Rehearsals for Extinct Anatomies" has a unique atmosphere which is interestingly unique compared to the other Quay films: "The Comb" was quite dark, as was "Street of Crocodiles" and their "Stille Nacht" series. Here, the feel is entirely its own, which is built thanks to the Brothers' excellent attention to detail and their ability to craft an atmosphere because of this effort of intricacy. Some marvelous techniques are on display that come to life anew, and although containing no traces of narrative (some Quay films actually do have elements of a story within them) these things are enough to sustain the fourteen-minute film.
"Rehearsals for Extinct Anatomies" has a number of things occurring within it, including a grotesque puppet stroking over and over a wart on its forehead, a flickering ball bouncing up and down a set of stairs, and a puppet laying in a bed in a room while another puppet watches over it. While these things are of little substance on their own, two main techniques really serve to bring it to life in a unique and fresh way: the usage of manual focus in the camera lens, and the movement of the camera itself. When zooming in on particular details, the camera often uses the focus of the lens as an opportunity to reveal the different layers of the shot, so that indistinguisable objects that the viewer was hardly aware of before are given attention without changing the camera angle. Likewise, to keep the scene of the puppets in the room interesting, the camera creates a theme of panning up and down and side to side to reveal different aspects of the scene, which are partially blocked by objects in the foreground that obscure what is going on in the room. Both techniques give the viewer somewhat of an idea of the composition of the whole place, but leaves a lot up to the imagination, which is what makes it so interesting and unique. It is also very difficult to describe in writing, which is why to really understand what I'm saying, it is best to go watch the film itself before things really click into place.
