A_Different_Drummer

The controversy surrounding this film, the praise and awards, say much more about Hollywood than about the actual movie. No, that is not a good thing. Leaving the implosion of Hollywood to historians and apologists of the far future, ANORA is an above-average, middle of the road, social drama, bookmarked by a very strong leading performance and a too-clever-for-words ending. (HINT: consider how resident genius Clif High likes to describe everything in our world as being based on Tension/Release.) What is especially distressing (of many distressing things) is the way credentialed major critics keep insisting this is an actual comedy with actual laughs. No it is not. No there are not. ((Designated "IMDb Top Reviewer." Please check out my list "167+ Nearly-Perfect Movies (with the occasional Anime or TV miniseries) you can/should see again and again (1932 to the present))

The reviews are not doing the series justice. Recall (mentioned by this reviewer and others) that our current obsession with feeding the "maw" of streaming media has resulted in a great deal of product which should have been done as film ending up crammed into a series format. Yes, there are flaws and weak spots. But taken as a whole, top to bottom, tip to tail, this series is an excellent, bittersweet, coming of age story for people, and possibly a country as well. The ending in particular is spectacular, the actors are brilliant, and there are scenes you will never forget. ((Designated "IMDb Top Reviewer." Please check out my list "167+ Nearly-Perfect Movies (with the occasional Anime or TV miniseries) you can/should see again and again (1932 to the present))

As a performer, Edgerton reminds one of Tea Leoni. Each always gives a solid performance, yet, when the history books are written, it will be noted that neither ever got enough screen time to satisfy their fans. Good to see Joel in front of the camera again. And the premise is solid. That said, the problem - as others have noted - is that there is a great move here but not a great series. The business end of the streaming sector wants everything to be a series. Not for the audience, for the accountants. But to take an edgy show like this - sorry for the pun - and keep teasing the audience with each episode is ultimately going to backfire. Just a matter of time. In all universes, not just this one. ((Designated "IMDb Top Reviewer." Please check out my list "167+ Nearly-Perfect Movies (with the occasional Anime or TV miniseries) you can/should see again and again (1932 to the present))