Anamorphic is amazing, but not for the "small fish". Cheap anamorphic lenses are complicated. I had one and I rarely used it. The reason is that, on most of them, you need to focus both lenses (anamorphic and spherical) and you cannot focus too near (you'd need a diopter filter). I selled mine to get a f/1.2, a decising which I do not regret.
You can still get the "anamorphic look" with a spherical lens. Just print a piece of wood with the oval shape and put it on an old filter frame. That way you get the beautiful anamorphic distortion, without sacrificing sharpness or practicality. Now, of course it won't be the same as a panavision/cooke anamorphic lens, but that's at least something.
