I’m not one to dismiss something I don’t like easily. I’ll try to look at it with a new perspective, or I’ll see what someone else might find interesting in it before saying, “No, this is not for anyone.” But then when I come across a show like Aniela, my patience reaches its limits. There may be some positives in watching Aniela. Well, I suppose if you understand the language, it may be a little bit more comprehensible, but in the grand scheme of things, I just couldn’t get behind this plot at all. In the 8-part series, the titular character is a middle-aged woman whose husband suddenly ditches her for another woman; no, she’s not younger or more beautiful; apparently, he’d just been looking for her all his life. Or something like that. What follows is a bizarre turn of events that is so convoluted that it will leave you bored more than anything else. Sure, it’s fun to have things unfold slowly, and be introduced to mysterious characters whom you don’t know anything about. But in this case, none of the decisions seem to have been made with any actual substance in mind.
Before I get into why the show is so complicated, I do want to mention that the rap is pretty good, and even though I’ve got no idea about Polish rap, this definitely has me curious, and I think that’s one of the main selling points of the show. On the other hand, I suppose it’s meant to be a feminist tale about identity and wealth and the way the two interact, but the purpose is lost long before the show concludes its final act. I was honestly stuck counting the minutes by the time it came to an end. And don’t get me wrong, you might want to call me stupid for not liking a complicated story, but with a show that’s so disconnected, anyone will feel at least a little bit annoyed, assuming they’re not driven to turn off their screens entirely. If I had had that chance, I totally would have.
Clearly, feminism is also one of the many themes the show wants to tackle, with the lead character being ditched by her husband, mistreated by other men in her life, and not knowing how to forge her own path because she’s always been controlled. It’s all there, but there’s more too, and it’s just a bit too much. But having said it’s too much, it’s still all surface level, and nothing actually sits right for more than 5 minutes before the subject’s changed, the character’s gone, or something new comes up. Yes, we’re asking for more complicated plots, but we mean actual substance, not just stories meandering through a series of loosely connected events for no reason.
The core of Aniela is that it’s a character-driven plot. It’s a show solely meant to focus on the titular character, so why does it try to get so many other things involved? The character progression seems to hit us out of nowhere, and nothing seems to be well-explained. No, I’m not asking for spoon-feeding, but at least help us figure out why she’s so eager to do that one thing or meet that one person. It almost felt like watching a show from in between, but never truly understanding what actually happened. The real problem here is that the show is so disjointed that even if you were at some point able to connect the dots, they’re stolen from you and then never given back.
Malgorzata Kozuchowska seems to be a veteran actress who knows what she’s doing, but it’s of no use because the show isn’t worth her presence or style; she just exists here because she has to. I’ve got to admit, some of her outfits are really cool, and the signature fur coat is a good touch, even if a tad old school. I do hope it’s faux, or maybe vintage would be better, but I digress. The young actresses seem talented mainly because of their rapping. In terms of acting, they’re just meant to be dazed and confused for the most part, and they pull that off pretty well, so that’s fine.
Aniela is drowning in profanity, and there’s a sex scene that’s so comically misplaced that it’s not even funny. I guess Polish rap is all about the curse words, but it certainly feels way overdone after a point. Visually, the show looks like it’s meant to be a heist thriller or something, with its dull tones and color grading that makes the protagonist’s white hair and orange lips pop. It’s not at all as mysterious or thrilling as it makes itself out to be. Actually, I don’t even know what genre it’s meant to be. If it’s a comedy, then it fails to do its part miserably. Guess you could call it a midlife coming-of-age story and get away with it. There’s some drama, some action, comedy, and lots of rap.
The series relies heavily on us caring about this disjointed nature it tries to own. It honestly felt like a mistake to me. The show is only 8 episodes, each about 35-40 minutes long, with 10 minutes for credits, but it somehow feels much longer and dragged on. I was so bored that I couldn’t even watch the show in its original language, because I was worried I’d use not understanding the language to feel bored enough to fall asleep. The dub is okay for a background watch, but the rap is in the original language (which is a good thing in my opinion) with full subtitles. At the end of the day, this show feels like abuse on the senses, so I would not recommend it. I’d give Aniela 2 out of 5 stars.
