Anora, the scintillating and simmering Sean Baker-directed dark non-love story film, was finally rewarded for being the cinematic triumph that it is at this year's Oscars ceremony, where it took home five awards, hot on the heels of a successful award season run.
The Palme d'Or-winning film, which has been considered the underdog of this year's award season, tells the story of a meeting, marriage (and subsequent divorce) between sex worker Anora, Ani (Mikey Madison) and a rich scion Vanya (Mark Eydelshteyn). It's a modern-day Cinderella story that has nods to Pretty Woman. It's fast, funny, frenetic, and Madison dazzles as Ani who is as fierce as she is fearless. It is a that's whip-smart and wildly entertaining, but creeping under the surface of Anora's appeal are its timely and pertinent political metaphors, which feel cacophonous against the backdrop of today's America.
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The host of this year's Academy Awards, Conan O'Brien, even nodded to them, joking that the Oscars went to a film about someone standing up to a Russian. Strip Anora back, and in large it is about an American who is wooed by the wealth and power of a Russian, who she bestows her trust in before he ultimately betrays her. It's about thinking you can trust somebody, and ultimately learning that the only person you can rely upon is yourself.
Ultimately, Anora resonates because it feels like a deconstructed snapshot of what the American Dream has become today; how alluring the dreamy notion of fairytale social mobility can feel for those dealing with economic insecurity who come into contact with the powerful and wealthy. The Pretty Woman parallels feel particularly pertinent, too. Vanya offers Anora $15,000 to be his 'horny girlfriend' for the week. Ani later confesses that she’d have taken the gig for 10, he admits he’d have gone as high as 30.
You watch Anora, which is set against the backdrop of Brighton Beach where the young and newly-betrothed couple inhabit Vanya's parent's mansion, with your heart in your mouth. You root for the gutsy Ani, who is fearless in the pursuit of creating a new life for herself, until you realise that all is not as it seems; that proximity to wealth and power doesn't always pave the way to safety and success — in fact most times, it's quite the opposite.
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Naomi May is a seasoned culture journalist and editor with over ten years’ worth of experience in shaping stories and building digital communities. After graduating with a First Class Honours from City University's prestigious Journalism course, Naomi joined the Evening Standard, where she worked across both the newspaper and website. She is now the Digital Editor at ELLE Magazine and has written features for the likes of The Guardian, Vogue, Vice and Refinery29, among many others. Naomi is also the host of the ELLE Collective book club.
