Poor Things received a reported eight-minute standing ovation at the 2023 Venice Film Festival, but the duration comes from a press headline, not an official festival measurement. The festival’s records confirm the film won the Golden Lion. The specific claim that Emma Stone performs a sex act with fruit is not established by the sources cited here.
What happened at Venice?
Poor Things premiered in competition at the 80th Venice International Film Festival in 2023. The New Yorker later reproduced a Variety headline describing an “8-Minute Standing Ovation” for the film. That makes eight minutes a reported press figure, not a duration certified by the festival or independently verified with a stopwatch. Ovation length is not an official award or a standardized measure of audience opinion.
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The festival’s official record is clearer on the result: La Biennale di Venezia awarded Poor Things the Golden Lion for Best Film. The award is distinct from the reported ovation and is the film’s formal festival recognition.
Is the fruit-scene claim confirmed?
Not by the sources cited here. Rotten Tomatoes’ September 1, 2023 roundup of early Venice reviews notes discussion of graphic sex and nudity in the film, but that broad description does not verify a particular sex act with fruit. The specific claim should therefore not be repeated as fact.
#1 Best Overall
- Winner of the 2024 Oscars Best Actress award (Emma Stone)
This distinction matters: evidence that a film contains explicit material is not evidence for every detailed scene description circulating online. The material reviewed here does not settle whether the alleged fruit scene appears in the film.
What is Poor Things about?
La Biennale’s film listing identifies Poor Things as a 141-minute, English-language film directed by Yorgos Lanthimos and based on Alasdair Gray’s novel. Emma Stone stars as Bella Baxter, a young woman brought back to life by the scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter. Bella leaves with Duncan Wedderburn on a journey of discovery as she learns about the world. Gray’s novel was published in 1992, according to the Associated Press.
Rank #2
Stone is part of the film’s ensemble and production team. At the award ceremony, Lanthimos said of her contribution, “This film is her, in front and behind the camera,” as reported by the Associated Press.
Quick Recap
Rank #4
Which details are established?
- Official award: La Biennale di Venezia records Poor Things as the 2023 Golden Lion for Best Film.
- Reported ovation: The eight-minute duration appeared in a Variety headline quoted by The New Yorker; it is not an official festival statistic.
- Explicit content: Contemporary reviews discussed graphic sex and nudity, but those reports do not confirm the specific fruit-scene allegation.
- Film details: La Biennale lists a 141-minute runtime, Lanthimos as director, Stone among the cast, and Gray’s novel as the source.
Sources
- La Biennale di Venezia: Poor Things film listing
- La Biennale di Venezia: official awards of the 80th Venice Film Festival
- The New Yorker: Poor Things review
- Rotten Tomatoes: Venice first-reviews roundup
- Associated Press: Venice award report
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