Anora

Anora is a grittier experience. All the performances are impressive and I will not be surprised if Madison receives an Oscar nomination.

It’s a rollercoaster ride, yet Baker never confuses movement with action. Every twist takes you somewhere you hadn’t quite expected to be, revealing an emotion you hadn’t expected to share.

As brazen and unapologetic as many of Baker’s characters are… There is a desperation and a dependency on others that Ani refuses to let define her.

It's absolutely breathless in terms of its energy.

I know you won’t believe it’s as good as everyone is saying it is until you hear it from me so here you are: yes, it’s as good as everyone is saying it is.

At its core it’s a romantic dramedy that’s gotten a lot of comparisons to Pretty Woman, though it seems even more spiritually akin to Federico Fellini’s Nights of Cabiria.

Baker’s watchword, as it were, is no indictment, no condemnation. When it comes to Ani, that’s fine. When it comes to the social order, that turns into artistic and social negligence.

There’s a sense that “Anora” has little beyond ambivalence for the characters within it.

Baker proves his point in a movie of split motivations held together by the revelation that is Mikey Madison.

The final gut punch of Anora is in Sean Baker's decision to suggest what these characters will do after the movie ends. It is a moment of emotional vitality and unexpected truth, delivered with the help of Mikey Madison's wondrous performance.