Anora

Written & Directed by: Sean Baker

Anora (Mikey Madison) is a sex worker. She works in a New York lap dance bar, serving all the usual mix of customers. Until one day her boss needs someone who speaks Russian to entertain a group of friends headed up by Vanya (Mark Eydelshteyn). Anora warms to him and agrees to meet him as a private customer. He’s young, rich and loves spending time with her, which leads them on a whirlwind affair, via a trip to Vegas! When Vanya’s family find out they are not amused and send their New York “minders” to take care of their son and his new relationship. But they find Anora is not quite the pushover they hope for, leading to a crazy chase across the city, a run-in with Vanya’s parents and some tough choices for Anora.

Anora fell flat for me. It started well, with great energy, but as it goes on, and it does go on at 139 minutes, it begins to grate, becoming repetitive and its unpleasant characters begin to drag. Vanya becomes childish, his mother just unpleasant and it all sucks the life from Anora and subsequently the story.

Which is a pity because for the first half there was a lot to recommend it. It starts as a dark Pretty Woman, a sex worker Cinderella story. It barrels along and has plenty of fun, leaning on screwball comedy, slapstick, and its comedic chase across New York. But It struggles to maintain that energy as it limps into its final act.

The two central performances are solid but they’re upstaged by Vanya’s Russian minders (Karren Karagulian,Vache Tovmasyan, Yura Borisov) who are great as a dysfunctional gang. But It is Borisov’s Igor that steals the show, a character who never really wants to be there and tries to put it right, and offer Anora some support, it’s a lovely subtle performance that lightens up the second half of the film.

I found Anora rather disappointing. It starts well as a dark take on Pretty Women, it has great energy, some fine screwball comedy, slapstick and a fun chase. But at 139 minutes, it eventually loses steam and begins to grate. Lots of people have enjoyed Anora, but for me it fell flat.