Anora (2024)

​“Anora” stars Mikey Madison, Mark Eydelshteyn, Yura Borisov, Karren Karagulian, Vache Tovmasyan, and Aleksei Serebryakov.  Released on October 18, 2024, the film chronicles the beleaguered marriage between a stripper and a Russian oligarch’s son.

The film was written and directed by Sean Baker, who also directed films such as “Four Letter Words”, “Starlet”, “The Florida Project”, and “Red Rocket”.  There’s nothing like a good love story to warm our hearts amid the forty-degree weather and negative press.  Of course, I am talking about the multiple romance films that have been appearing on Netflix or the Hallmark Channel, mainly the ones that occur during the holidays.  I’m not joking.  Look up what’s coming out on Netflix this month, and you’ll see how many copy-and-paste holiday romance selections are released weekly.  There is a thing as too much love, you know.  But, on some occasions, we’re in the mood for a different type of love story that’s sexier than your typical romantic endeavor.  This is one of those occasions, with writer/director Sean Baker returning to prove that there’s more soul to his filmography than their alluring appearances.  Does his latest feature film show that romance and sex can go hand in hand with the storytelling, or are we better off watching another cookie-cutter romance at home?  Let’s find out.

The story follows Anora “Ani” Mikheeva (Madison), a young stripper making a living in Brighton Beach, a Russian-speaking neighborhood in Brooklyn.  As the only stripper who speaks Russian, Ani is introduced to Ivan “Vanya” Zakharov (Eydelshteyn), the immature and dissolute son of a wealthy oligarch Nikolai Zakharov (Serebryakov).  Ivan is currently in America to study but prefers to party and play video games until the dawning light.  That is until sparks begin to fly when he hires Ani as his personal sex worker and pays her to pose as his girlfriend.  This led to them eloping during their trip to Las Vegas.  However, this also catches the attention of Ivan’s wealthy family, who threaten to tear their beleaguered marriage apart.

“The Florida Project” was my first exposure to Sean Baker as a filmmaker.  While I didn’t see it in the theater when it was first released in 2017, I did give it a shot when it was on Prime Video.  All I can say is that it was an interesting slice-of-life experience that’s also creative in his colorful vision and humane in his storytelling.  Not only that, but it also reflected Baker’s passion for showcasing some of the lesser-known groups of the everlasting population, including immigrants and sex workers.  While some of his works may sound a bit “inappropriate” regarding their concepts involving sex workers, they’re actually more genuine and grounded in their plots and craftsmanship than just two hours of people doing the “business” for money.  This was one of the reasons I was eager to check out “Anora”, which features a sex worker facing some relationship drama while performing sex acts for cash.  Another reason is Mikey Madison, whose main role has garnered plenty of awards buzz since the film’s premiere at Cannes.

It took me this long to talk about “Anora” because I was waiting for some of my favorite theaters to receive it during its wider theatrical release.  Sadly, it didn’t appear at the cinema closest to me, so I went to the one that’s a little bit farther since it usually plays specific indie movies first.  So, after all of that, was it actually worth the travel?  Yes.  Yes, it was.  “Anora” was one of the films I expected to like, but not as much as the critics.  One reason is its runtime, which is close to two hours and 20 minutes long.  Regarding its concept and the protagonist being a sex worker, I was a bit concerned that it would leave me feeling drained from all of its prolonged sexual encounters amid the dialogue-driven drama.  Another reason is that the story has that Romeo and Juliet/Meet the Parents vibe that would’ve had the disadvantage of falling into familiar territory.  However, upon watching its first act, I gradually began to understand the erotic and dynamic appeal of the film.  However, the stuff after the first act made it surprisingly better than I had anticipated.

“Anora” is a beefy yet highly invigorating and sexy love story that’s chock full of talent, comedy, and surprisingly heartbreak.  Sean Baker blended these three elements seamlessly to create a refreshing and genuinely energetic perspective of a sham relationship.  The first act is a typical but enthusiastic boy-meets-girl scenario with a spicy and seductive twist involving a stripper falling in love with a young Russian adult who’s more childish than responsible.  If R-rated sex isn’t your thing, then I’m unsure if you would handle the first hour because there’s plenty of love-making happening underneath that romance.  However, if you manage to stomach your way through the first act, you’ll be rewarded with a consistently fierce and screwball road trip that’s also surprisingly hilarious.  The remaining runtime is why I adored “Anora” and the story beats that took a more realistic and poignant approach to the topic.

As mentioned earlier, Sean Baker has a knack for showcasing the marginalized groups of the population and their everyday struggles with life’s problems amid their working-class status.  For movies like “Anora”, Sean Baker doesn’t dehumanize the prostitutes in his stories.  Instead, he provided a mixture of spiciness and humanity in their sex-driven protagonists facing the harsh and cruel values of life.  In the case of “Anora”, Ani finds her love questioned by Ivan’s actions and wealthy family, who would stop at nothing to arrange the annulment between the two.  That makes the movie more than just two hours and 20 minutes of shameless soft porn.  It’s a representation of a doomed love caused by the characters’ inappropriate and impulsive actions.  Baker’s screenplay delivered a bold approach to the topic that may not bode well for general audiences.  However, it’s also gratifying regarding its dialogue and characters because of its depiction of Ani as a human being who hopes to be genuinely loved.  As for his direction and editing, Baker had a balance of old-fashioned, subtlety, and eccentricity that made every sequence pop like a balloon, which helped keep the pace chugging smoothly despite its runtime.  It’s lengthy but doesn’t feel very lengthy due to Baker’s ability to inject pizzazz and soul into the sexy relationship and its gut-punching climax.

Mikey Madison is another actress who started gaining traction after her appearance in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” as a follower of the Manson family.  Following her recent role in 2022’s “Scream”, she now took center stage as a sex worker experiencing both love and heartache.  This role is making Madison a household name this year, similar to Margaret Qualley in “The Substance”.  I guess leaving the Charles Manson Family behind really can make a massive difference.  Based on my experience, I believe she deserves every praise she’s gotten.  Madison was undoubtedly alluring as Ani, but her nuanced humanity and striking edge made her performance impeccable.  She would definitely make for a possible contender at this year’s awards race.  Mark Eydelshteyn was also terrific as Ivan, whose irresponsible persona matches the actor’s authentic talent.  However, the biggest surprise has to be Ivan’s godfather, Toros (Karagulian), and the henchmen, Igor (Borisov) and Garnick (Tovmasyan).  The actors playing these characters were entertaining in their performances and surprisingly amusing without being altered into live-action cartoons.

Overall, “Anora” is a genuinely striking and consistently entertaining anti-love story whose bold narrative and talents match its traditional allure.  It’s seductive and wild to a fault, but not to the point of being distasteful or even sappy.  Underneath this sexy fantasy lies a well-crafted and smartly written outlook of an impulsive affection that’s impossible to keep together.  Mikey Madison delivered her career-best performance as Ani, and Toros and the henchmen were excellent supporting characters that worked wonders with the film’s subtle yet effective comedy.  More importantly, it further showcased Sean Baker as a worthwhile storyteller whose voice speaks for the humanity of marginalized working-class people through his eye-popping direction, screenplay, and editing.  It’s one of the movies I didn’t expect to love as much as the critics, but somehow managed to surpass that expectation easily.  This is among the best movies of 2024 that’s worth checking out if you’re a fan of Baker’s previous works.

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