36/18
In a scene in Vegas, the character refers to “McCarran Airport”
Story
Anora, a young sex worker from Brooklyn, meets and impulsively marries the son of an oligarch. When word gets out in Russia, his fairytale is threatened when his parents travel to New York to have the marriage annulled. Sean Baker wanted to cast Yura Borisov after seeing him in Coupe Br. 6 (2021). While Las Vegas International Airport was known as McCarran International Airport for decades, in late 2021 its name was changed to Harry Reid International Airport. Igor: PLEASE! STOP!
Mentioned in Close-Up: Anora (2024)
SCREAM!. Daddy AF Written and starring Catherine Slater (aka Slayyter). The hype surrounding Anora is huge and it has lived up to expectations. I had no idea what to expect, other than to combine all three Sean Baker films in my head and think it might be somewhere in the middle (The Florida Project, Red Rocket, and Tangerine – all great films in their own way and all about sex workers). It had a similar tone and focus, but beyond that, Anora was a new beast in its own right. I will say that there were a lot more Safdie brothers in the film than I expected! A lot of people were screaming at each other for a very long time!
You have your side, your conflict, and your ending
Very tense! The film is set in three acts, like many great films. At first I felt like it was going to be a bit like Boogie Nights in terms of structure, and I would say that was pretty accurate. Without saying much about it, I will say that the ending made the film for me, and my girlfriend agreed. You have a 2 hour experience that is mostly fun and mostly fascinating, that all feels a bit pulpy while also offering a lot of very detailed details about the sex work experience, but it all seems fun until you get to the end. Instead of an ending that neatly wraps everything up in a pretty bow, it’s an ending that unties the bow, opens the box, and leaves you with the RAW reality of it all. I was a little in awe, taking in the very specific energy of the packed room as the silent credits rolled and people very slowly started (very quietly) to file out of the auditorium.
Mikey Madison is fantastic as Anora
When I saw the commercials for the film, I was expecting a cheerful, sweet girl – but she plays a tough, wild, smart ass who is VERY New York, and it was a pleasant surprise. Anora is a mostly likable character, but not always, and that only adds to her humanity and the overall realism and complexity of her functionality as a main character. You experience a rollercoaster of ups and downs with him and the depth feels very realistic. He is also extremely HOT and there is A LOT of SEX in this movie. The entire cast is fantastic, but new faces Mark Eidelshtein and Yura Borisov make the strongest mark as talented actors who deserve much more casting in the future. Eidelshtein stole the show as the most believable rich kid on a wild trip and Borisov’s gentle presence was loud AF without the need for many words. I definitely think this is one of Baker’s two best films to date, maybe his best and one of the best films of 2024.
It’s really great to see how this film is doing
The house was completely packed on Monday night at 9:30 and I hear the opening weekend numbers were one of the highest of the year. This is the kind of original, honest, essential filmmaking that needs to be seen, celebrated, and supported, and it’s a joy to see it happen. I’m excited to see Mikey Madison’s career blossom after this, and I can’t wait to see more from Sean Baker.
