Anora is a quickly paced, at moments hilarious, but ultimately heart-wrenchingly realistic portrayal of a modern “romance across classes” tale, elevated by a nuanced and hectic performance in the face of Mikey Madison.
From the very first shot Anora is not shying away from what it’s about to offer the audience. Not only is it a close dissection of the life of a sex worker, but also the life of a second-generation immigrant. We are first introduced to “Ani” who is disarmingly charming and seemingly good at her job in a downtown strip club. But when the neon lights are off and the sun comes up, we finally get to meet Anora who ditches the high heels and glamour and, barefaced, gets back to her small apartment in Brighton Beach that happens to be the home of the biggest Russian-American community in New York. That’s when she meets Ivan or Vanya (Mark Eydelshteyn) – the son of a famous Russian oligarch – who enters Anora’s life just as abruptly as he’ll eventually leave it, but with nonetheless an intention to shift it.
The film that earlier this year managed to bag the biggest prize at the Cannes Film Festival successfully manages the tonal shifts within its 3 distinctive acts, starting with the optimistic, colourful, almost dream-like beginning when Anora realises she has real feelings for Vanya and she might end up being the main character of those unrealistic romantic stories that somehow always happen to someone that’s not you. As much as an audience member we wish to plunge in this hopefulness of Anora, we just can’t help it, but fear for her. Although the film is frequently referred to as a “reversed Cinderella”, there’s something rotten underneath that sugar coated fairy-tale that is perceptible from the very start, like some of Vanya’s alarming character traits that elude Anora, who is simply blinded by her hopes and affection. So it’s no surprise when midway through the film takes a surprising left turn and transforms into a fast-paced and slightly violent Safdie brothers-style chaotic comedy as Vanya’s godfather raids the newlyweds’ nest and demands for the marriage to be annulled immediately. The raid scene ends up with Vanya literally running away from responsibilities and Anora finding herself forced to bear the consequences by joining the Armenian men in the quest of finding Ivan and putting an end to their spontaneous-made decision. This is also where the narrative starts losing its steam. The scenes of them bickering and going from place to place within the Russian community in and around Coney Island might be absurdly hilarious at times, but soon becomes too repetitive and by the time Vanya is found, there is a certain fatigue that prevails. However, the Palme d’Or winner does manage to land on its feet with its dreadfully realistic ending that lingers under your skin and, without spoiling too much, is a reminder of how cruelly unfair the real world can be.
As much as Anora is entertaining it fails at its core message and this is breaking stereotypes. Much of the advertisement of this film is how ground-breaking it’s to how sex workers are portrayed onscreen and how it criticizes the way they’ve been treated. Despite all those claims there’s barely any mention of the mistreatment of sex workers or how decriminalisation and legalisation can lead to less stigma and social exclusion. In between clients we see Anora gossiping and eating her food on break like in every other regular workplace, yet there’s only one time the ongoing inequality is addressed and it’s when Anora mentions to her boss that whenever he can provide her with “401K, health benefits and insurance” that’s when he can decide when and how she works. Apart from that the movie tries to shift focus more on class differences, and especially by the end, the meaning of power and control. All these themes, however, seem to be scattered without real root and simply scratch the surface. It’s true that the director Sean Baker never judges Anora for being a sex worker, yet considering this is not his first project that tackles this subject, it just feels like the bare minimum.
It can also be argued if the character of Anora herself is slightly underdeveloped or if it’s just because the film happens to focus on just a fragment of her life and sees no need to reveal too much, yet one thing is certain, Mikey Madison delivers a rich and nuanced performances that manages to cover up any ‘gaps” in Baker’s writing. Madison swiftly switches between Ani’s poised and hot-tempered facade to Anora’s raw vulnerability that we often see peeking from between her mordant sarcastic remarks from the very beginning and which by the end she starts wearing more on her sleeve. It’s Madison’s layered portrayal that elevates the film and would, without doubt, put her in the conversation for the prestige awards in the upcoming award season. Other actors, worth mentioning, are Yuriy Borisov who plays the tough-looking, yet kind-hearted Igor who happens to be a surprising scene stealer, as well as Mark Eydelshteyn who’s breakthrough portrayal of the immature and frankly annoying, yet somehow charming Vanya would hopefully open him the door for a bright international career.
Ultimately, Anora might have good intentions and a refreshing exploration of dynamics in eastern European communities in the USA, but it’s still slightly half-baked and brings nothing new to the table. However, its take on how there is no knight in shining armour in the 21st century and even if there seems to be, he’s probably just another momma’s boy, is quite entertaining and worth checking for yourself.
