Three days after seeing the 2024 Palme d’Or winner and Sean Baker’s latest masterpiece, Anora remains one of the most important films of the year in more ways than one. Starring the all-encompassing and iridescent Mikey Madison as Anora, (Ani for short), we are whisked away into her world as a dancer and sex worker from Brighton Beach, NY.
As soon as we get our footing in the atmosphere of the New York club scene, Anora (and audiences) are whisked away by the young son of a Russian oligarch, Ivan, who wants to pay her to be his girlfriend for the week. Their fairy-tale relationship takes off as they head to endless parties, both in Ivan’s Brooklyn mansion and over in Las Vegas, where they eventually get married. Knowing Baker as a filmmaker, the ultimate fate of their relationship was bound to take a turn. Ivan ends up running for the hills, neither his new wife nor his father’s henchmen can locate him, and we spend most of the movie with a mismatched search party of people whose livelihoods depend on finding him.
Where Anora sets itself apart from any other action-heavy Safdie Brothers-type film is its long, drawn-out scenes. Filled with unexpected witty yet humanistic dialogue that attaches itself to once enemy characters, Baker encompasses a whirlwind of action and comedy while never letting the audience forget about the intrinsic emotions of every person involved. I can’t possibly mention it enough, but everyone else raving about this film is right. Mikey Madison gives one of the best performances of the year-and let’s face it, it’s refreshing to see a new, electric presence on screen that pays justice to so many people who’s stories and lives get swept under the rug every day.
As we get further along in the story, we see how the characters homogenize their goals, and how their socio-economic positioning has led them to their respective places. While Anora initially wants to find Ivan out of pure love, (and, let’s be honest, his money is a nice bonus), the Russian/Armenian party’s jobs and lives are on the line. The only person without a stake in the matter seems to be Ivan himself, which is exactly why he had no problem running away in the first place because it always works out in the end for him and his wealthy family.
The final scene is like a nail in the coffin of our optimism, but that shouldn’t discourage you from watching this masterpiece. I won’t give too much away here, but after being so attached to the film’s characters, it isn’t until the last few minutes of the film where we find ourselves stumbling back into reality. The end credits have no added sound, leaving audiences with that much more sensitivity to the real world and the impact of this important and very relevant story.
Under the mink coats that protect us from the snowy winter weather of New York, Anora’s glittering costume underneath doesn’t shine past its rationally encompassing blanket, which is exactly why this movie works so well. Not only is it constantly entertaining, it is simultaneously so tangible. This film is more than just a whirlwind relationship between two unlikely lovebirds, it’s about the biting toll of reality that only certain people must face while others get to float by and continue living their fairy tale.
★ ★ ★ ★ ½ / ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
As soon as we get our footing in the atmosphere of the New York club scene, Anora (and audiences) are whisked away by the young son of a Russian oligarch, Ivan, who wants to pay her to be his girlfriend for the week. Their fairy-tale relationship takes off as they head to endless parties, both in Ivan’s Brooklyn mansion and over in Las Vegas, where they eventually get married. Knowing Baker as a filmmaker, the ultimate fate of their relationship was bound to take a turn. Ivan ends up running for the hills, neither his new wife nor his father’s henchmen can locate him, and we spend most of the movie with a mismatched search party of people whose livelihoods depend on finding him.
Where Anora sets itself apart from any other action-heavy Safdie Brothers-type film is its long, drawn-out scenes. Filled with unexpected witty yet humanistic dialogue that attaches itself to once enemy characters, Baker encompasses a whirlwind of action and comedy while never letting the audience forget about the intrinsic emotions of every person involved. I can’t possibly mention it enough, but everyone else raving about this film is right. Mikey Madison gives one of the best performances of the year-and let’s face it, it’s refreshing to see a new, electric presence on screen that pays justice to so many people who’s stories and lives get swept under the rug every day.
As we get further along in the story, we see how the characters homogenize their goals, and how their socio-economic positioning has led them to their respective places. While Anora initially wants to find Ivan out of pure love, (and, let’s be honest, his money is a nice bonus), the Russian/Armenian party’s jobs and lives are on the line. The only person without a stake in the matter seems to be Ivan himself, which is exactly why he had no problem running away in the first place because it always works out in the end for him and his wealthy family.
The final scene is like a nail in the coffin of our optimism, but that shouldn’t discourage you from watching this masterpiece. I won’t give too much away here, but after being so attached to the film’s characters, it isn’t until the last few minutes of the film where we find ourselves stumbling back into reality. The end credits have no added sound, leaving audiences with that much more sensitivity to the real world and the impact of this important and very relevant story.
Under the mink coats that protect us from the snowy winter weather of New York, Anora’s glittering costume underneath doesn’t shine past its rationally encompassing blanket, which is exactly why this movie works so well. Not only is it constantly entertaining, it is simultaneously so tangible. This film is more than just a whirlwind relationship between two unlikely lovebirds, it’s about the biting toll of reality that only certain people must face while others get to float by and continue living their fairy tale.
★ ★ ★ ★ ½ / ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
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