Movie Review: ‘Anora’ | Moviephone
Mikey Madison as Oni in ‘Anora’. Photo: Courtesy of NEON.
Opening in theaters on October 18th is ‘Anora’, directed by Sean Baker and starring Mickey Madison, Mark Eidelstein, Yuri Borisov, Karen Karagulyan, Vache Tovmasian, Aleksei Serebriakov, Daria Ekmasova and Lindsay Normington.
Related Article: Mikey Madison Talks ‘Anora’ and Working with Director Sean Baker
Initial thoughts
(L to R) Mikey Madison as Annie and Mark Eidelstein as Ivan in ‘Anora’. Photo: Courtesy of NEON.
‘Anora’ is perhaps the biggest film yet from independent filmmaker Sean Baker, whose past works include ‘Tangerine,’ ‘The Florida Project,’ ‘Starlet’ and ‘Red Rocket.’ Directing, writing and editing his own films, and using innovative techniques such as shooting an entire film on an iPhone (as he did with ‘Tangerine’), Baker brings an authenticity to his films that focus on how people live and work. Reflects his emotions. On the Margins of Society – which includes sex workers in several of his films.
The latter is front and center in ‘Anora,’ whose title character is a stripper in a Brooklyn club who doesn’t mingle with clients after hours for more intimate encounters when the money is right. One such encounter leads Anora on an adventure that requires her to reclaim her right to happiness and self-determination, albeit in a mix of screwball farce, chase movie and class-based drama that goes and will in some unexpected directions. You both exhale and move.
Story and direction
(L to R) Sean Baker and DP Drew Daniels on the set of ‘Anora’. Photo: Courtesy of NEON.
Ani (Mikey Madison), whose full name is Anora, is a young Russian-American stripper who lives in the Russian-heavy Brighton Beach community of Brooklyn and is drawn to the Russian clientele of her club because she can speak their language. One such client, a seemingly shy yet charismatic young man named Ivan “Vanya” Zakharov (Mark Idelstein), arrives with fistfuls of money and plenty of charm and immediately smitten the alluring Annie.
Evan invites Ani to his house for more personal work and to be his “girlfriend” for a week – for which Evan is willing to pay Ani an exorbitant amount of money. His palatial home and endless supply of cash belie the fact that Evan “doesn’t” do anything – even though, ostensibly to study in the US, he lives the larger life of his parents. The next week is a blur for Ani of constant sex, drugs, partying with Evan and his friends, and even a spontaneous trip – culminating in Ani and Evan impulsively eloping, in Las Vegas.
However, soon after they arrive home, Ivan’s parents – powerful, high-ranking Russian oligarchs – learn of what happened through Ivan’s handler Toros (Karen Karagulyan), who is then tasked with holding Annie and Ivan until Ivan’s arrival. Angry parents can come and cancel the marriage. Ivan runs away from home instead, so Toros and his two accomplices, Garnik (Vache Tovmasyan) and the surprisingly sensitive Igor (Yura Borisov), take Annie with them, and are forced to search through the night for the drunken, dissolute, spoiled man-child. Violently fights back, both physically and verbally, against being forced to give up both the privileged new life and what he perceives as true love.
(L to R) Sean Baker, Mikey Madison and Mark Eidelstein on the set of ‘Anora’. Photo: Courtesy of NEON.
Right out of the gate, Baker makes ‘Anora’ move at a furious clip, yet never loses sight of the relationship at the heart of the story and the character at the center of that exciting romance. Ani and Evan share enough quiet moments together to at least give the impression that they have a real connection, though it’s interspersed with a frenzied whirlwind of partying, sex, and hedonism that makes one wonder if there’s really anything between these two fueled by unlimited cash. Flying along on a rocket of youthful energy.
The pace doesn’t let up for the initial disaster – when the distraught Toros and his goons show up – and even when Ivan runs away from his parents like a child in a tantrum, Annie shows another side of herself: cursing, screaming, fighting physically raw enough. To strike two tough-looking Russian boys sent to intimidate him with strength and fury. The initial confrontation between this petite young woman and these petty men is a brilliantly executed combination of slapstick and heartfelt rage, with Madison giving it all up on the battlefield.
‘Anora’ falters a bit during the extended second act, where Ani, Toros, Igor, and Garnik hit up nearly every hangout in Brooklyn and Manhattan in search of Ivan – when it’s pretty obvious where they should look first. At 138 minutes, ‘Anora’ is a bit long, and this middle section could easily have benefited from being shortened, although in fairness we get glimpses of life in Brighton Beach – one of Brooklyn’s roughest immigrant communities, in the shadow of Coney Island – vibrant and colourful.
With the arrival of Ivan’s overbearing, possessive parents, ‘Anora’ returns to full power. When they try to call off the wedding and force Ani to seemingly win, some of the characters are revealed for who they are (some surprisingly, some not), and the real message of ‘Anora’ comes through poignantly: people with money and power, most of us are disposable servants. And nothing but playthings. It’s a tough read that effectively portrays the humanity and compassion that Baker brings to all of his work.
the cast
(L to R) Mikey Madison as Annie and Mark Eidelstein as Ivan in ‘Anora’. Photo: Courtesy of NEON.
From the start, this is Mikey Madison’s show: previously known for playing Pamela Adlon’s daughter on the FX series ‘Better Things’ as well as a role in 2022’s ‘Scream,’ Madison delivers a tour de force here, Whether she’s making her sales pitch in Russian, grinding seductively for her clients at the club, (basically) settling into her new life as a trophy wife, or fighting it all to keep that life from being ripped away from her. Ani/Anora is an incredibly layered and complex character, with warmth and a single, fierce will to survive and assert her rights. That he does this with the odds so heavily stacked against him is one of his most endearing qualities.
The rest of the cast is a mix of Russian and Armenian actors, with Mark Idelstein right on target as the spoiled, dissolute Ivan and Yuri Borisov, in his American debut, giving surprising depth and depth to the quiet Igor. As with his previous projects, Baker not only casts the right faces – from the lived-in to the impassive – but finds actors who transmit just the right amount of humanity and vulnerability no matter how difficult it seems.
final thought
(L to R) Mark Eidelstein as Evan, Mikey Madison as Annie in ‘Anora’. Photo: Courtesy of NEON.
‘Anora’ won Cannes Film Festival’s highest, honour, the Palme d’Or earlier this year and with the film releasing as awards season heats up, there’s no doubt that Sean Baker’s film will be there. His look at people working and struggling on the margins of caste-rich society is one of the most important in film today, and he’ll be a lock for Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Editing nominations, in our view.
As for Mikey Madison, it’s equally a no-brainer that she should land a spot in the Best Actress race. While a bit self-indulgent at times, ‘Anora’ is a thoroughly original combination of character study, chase movie, bedroom farce and working-class comedy-drama that (if some of its content doesn’t stop being notoriously stagnant among Academy voters) is a top contender and best of the year. should rank as one of the movies.
‘Anora’ has 8.5 out of 10 stars.
“Love is a rush.”
Showtimes and tickets
Sean Baker’s Palme d’Or winner ANORA is a bold, thrilling, and hilarious variation on a modern-day Cinderella story. Mikey Madison (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood)… read the plot
What is the plot of ‘Anora’?
A Russian-American stripper named Anora (Mikey Madison) — or Ani for short — has a whirlwind romance with the son of a wealthy Russian oligarch (Mark Eidelstein) and runs away with him. Her parents find out about the marriage and plan to break it off – but Ani wants to fight to keep her man.
Who is in the cast of ‘Anora’?
- Mikey Madison as Anora/Ani
- Identify Idelstein as Ivan “Vanya” Zakharov
- Yura Borisov as Igor
- Karen Karagoulian as Toros
- Vache Tovmasyan as Garnik
- Alexei Serebryakov as Nikolai Zakharov
- Daria Ekmasova as Galina Zakharova
- Lindsay Normington as Diamond
A scene from the movie ‘Anora’. Photo: Courtesy of NEON.
