Anora Was Anora-ing

 

After Anora won five Oscars at last week's Academy Awards including Best Picture, I decided to make a point of seeing was the fuss was all about on Saturday night at the Kendall Square Cinema.

Although Anora is about an hour and 15 minutes shorter in duration than The Brutalist, it felt much longer than The Brutalist as I could not wait for the movie to end. I found Anora an absolutely annoying film. Or should I say Anora-ing.

I did not find the story of an exotic dancer who marries the son of a Russian oligarch and the efforts of the Russian oligarch's family to nullify the marriage to be a compelling story. It is certainly not a better movie than The Brutalist or the Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown. Hell, I thought Anora was worse than The Substance and I loathed The Substance. 

Interesting, Mikey Madison won Best Actress in an upset over Demi Moore who starred in The Substance. As Moore's performance was the best thing about The Substance, Madison's performance was the bright spot in Anora. I remember Madison from her portrayal of Manson family member Susan Atkins in Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood. 

Frankly, I wish the number of Best Picture nominees were reduced to five as they were prior to 2009. If that was the case, I don't think films like Anora or The Substance would have received such nominations though I think Madison and Moore might still have received nominations for their individual performances.

The only consolation of seeing Anora was the cost of admission was only $7 because it had won Best Picture. Even so, I think that $7 could have been better spent elsewhere.