Anora
Updated: May 17, 2025
A knock out tragic comic fairy tale from Sean Baker spirals out of control.
Sean Baker's latest American dream story is an exhilarating party of reckless young love between exotic dancer Anora or Ani (Mikey Madison) and Vanya (Mark Eydelshteyn) a spoiled son of a Russian oligarch who spend a wild week together filled with wild drinking, drugs, sex and spontaneous marriage. What seems like a dream come true as Ani thinks she has found her happy ending, she is caught in a shameful act of defiance to Vanya’s family, their exuberant love affair is nothing but a stain on the carpet that must be merely mopped up and disregarded.
Continuing to follow a grittily candy coloured side of America, Baker encompasses everything from his recent filmography into a giant dizzying parade of chaotic characters and hilarious screw ball comedy heading for disaster while unearthing a tragic exploitative tale centred on sex workers like Ani who endure manipulation and mistreatment. Anora accelerates into so much carnage it reaches the energy of the Safdie Brothers Good Time (2017) meets Cinderella. Baker's revives a tender portrait of sex workers who are living the life they have been delt who are continually used and dehumanised by richer society around them. Ani mentions at one point that she dreams to "do it" at Disney land which she calls a lifelong dream, this remark recalls The Florida Project (2017) and Baker's critical message about America being a magical land with the perfect life always in sight and available to all. When the inevitable comes, and Ani’s dream fall apart Baker brings back the harsh reality that she is living, like Tangerine (2015) Anora spends most of its runtime time enjoying its crazy comedic rampage before settling into truth, but its Madison who makes it work.
Mikey Madison is on fire in this fiercely vibrant but melancholic performance, like the picture Madison carries the emotional weight and charging fury that builds and builds until it shatters to pieces. Ani is like balloon inflating fast reaching popping point and then slowly deflated by the end. Breaking into the scene is Mark Eydelshteyn whose constant childish behaviour is both side-splitting and pitiful, his want of attention for Ani seems genuine but also thoughtless. Eydelshteyn’s physical comedic timing is immense and one of the most entertaining performances of the year. Not far behind is the idiotic supporting performances of Karren Karagulian Vanya’s Godfather Toros and Yura Borisov as Igor one of Toros’ muscle, who spend the second half of the film in a constant frenzy trying to fix Vanya’s 'shameful betrayal' to the family. The entire ensemble breaks out it in loud violent yelling and screaming which is both hysterical and exhausting.
Baker makes another subversive needle drop with a revised version of Take That’s 'Greatest Day' as a recurring anthem first capturing Ani in an honest but magic blaze as she dances at her place of work and then again during Ani and Vanya's spoils. Baker has a moving touch with being able to use iconic tunes of modern pop and turn them into something beautifully sad. Drew Daniels continues to marry a gritty realist cinematography with wonderous spouts of colour and soft glows, the streets of Brighton Beach NY are once again captured like a wonderland and at the same time bleak and grimy.
Anora is riot of pleasures and poignancy with a remarkable unhinged ensemble cast but forcefully forged by Mikey Madison in Baker's funniest film. Baker proves to have one of the most empathetic eyes for sex workers, the same way Jesus did.
Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared."-John 8:10-11
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