21/33

Line of Events

Anora, a young sex worker from Brooklyn, impulsively meets and marries the son of an oligarch

When news reaches Russia, her fairy tale is threatened when her parents travel to New York to have the marriage annulled. From Better Things to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and Scream, Mikey Madison looks back at the roles that shaped his path to Anora. At a press conference at the Cannes Film Festival, Mikey Madison said that director Sean Baker and his wife, producer Samantha Kwan, will do different sexual poses to show the actors what he wants them to do.

Close-up reference: Anora (2024)

Igor: PLEASE! STOP! LET’S SHOUT!

The setting is attractive

Mikey Madison plays the title role, a New York lap dancer. Then the story captivates us. She foolishly marries (a young, immature son of a Russian oligarch) and then finds herself in a terrible situation.

Madison is an excellent actor, but everyone else is good

Nudity and sex abound, unfashionable for a mainstream film, but this film and its increasingly comic dramatic side have a rare vitality. Amazing filming locations such as Las Vegas and Coney Island in the offseason are also expertly captured. At over two hours, it’s too long, but it barely holds our attention because we can’t imagine how it’s going to end.

The conclusion is not a disappointment

The London Film Festival screenings were sold out and I’m not surprised. This is a dynamic film from a fearless director. Check out the full lineup for the 62nd New York Film Festival this fall.