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How ‘Anora,’ ‘The Brutalist’ and More Oscar-Nominated Screenplays Explore the Corrupting Influence of Capitalism
The Oscar-nominated screenplays for 'Anora,' 'The Brutalist,' 'The Substance' and more probe the impact of capitalism on personal identity and integrity.
But after a year of tremendous cultural volatility, both in the entertainment industry and across the globe, the films nominated for screenplay awards, including “ Anora,” “The Brutalist,” “September 5,” “The Substance” and “ A Complete Unknown,” seem to be drawing battle lines, some more clearly defined than others, between the forces of what’s right, true or honest, and what makes the most money. Sean Baker’s “Anora,” for example, focuses on the chaotic romance between sex worker Ani (Mikey Madison) and the son of a Russian oligarch (Mark Eydelshteyn), but it’s the transactional mentality of its title character — who’s constantly monetizing her time, attention and emotional commitment — that leaves her vulnerable to far more personal danger than the legal repercussions of the quickie marriage she agrees to. Similarly, James Mangold and Jay Cocks’ “A Complete Unknown” script and Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold’s for “The Brutalist” share thematic DNA — even more explicitly — in their respective portraits of creatives battling against powerful and inconsistently well-meaning benefactors.
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