Running Time: 139 min.
Rating: R
**The Following Review Contains Plot Spoilers For 'Anora' **
Lost amid all the justifiable praise for writer/director Sean Baker's Anora is how quickly it flips, as a hilariously entertaining farce starts to become more movingly raw and real with each new crazy development. And in doing that it melds elements of different genres into a picture that opens rather conventionally, giving little hint of the wild, exhilarating ride to come. All those comparisons to Pretty Woman set the bar low, lulling viewers into anticipating Hollywood's latest take on the "hooker with a heart of gold." Only the trope isn't just subverted here, but turned upside down and shaken over the course of an energetically paced two hours and a half hours.
You'll know the point Baker pulls the trigger, as misadventures pile up around an arrangement that quickly goes south, derailing the title character's chances of cashing in on her dreams. What the cautiously optimistic protagonist experiences instead is a nightmare that's equal parts funny, violent and heartbreaking. It's all powered by Mikey Madison, who plays each moment with the grit and vulnerability of a woman desperately trying to salvage a rapidly deteriorating situation. As circumstances constantly change, she knows the handwriting's on the wall, but still won't go down without a fight, determined to control her own destiny.
Anora "Ani" Mikheeva (Madison) is a 23-year-old stripper and sex worker at a nightclub in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn who's introduced to Ivan "Vanya" Zakharov (Mark Eydelshteyn), the spoiled, hyperactive 21-year-old son of a wealthy Russian oligarch. After paying Ani for a series of sexual encounters at his family's lavish mansion, he offers her more to stay with him an entire week. But as they grow closer when she parties with him and his entourage in Vegas, Vanya proposes they marry so he can avoid returning to Russia to work for his father. Though initially hesitant, Ani agrees.
After eloping, Ani quits her job and moves into Vanya's mansion when word of their marriage reaches his disapproving parents, who send Armenian relative Toros (Karren Karagulian) and his two thugs Garnik (Vache Tovmasyan) and Igor (Yura Borisov) over to force them into getting an annulment. But the bumbling Russians have their hands full with Ani, causing all hell to break loose as she struggles to save a relationship that's suddenly fallen way short of her lofty expectations. Now wondering if this impulsive decision was worth it, she could lose everything.
Baker teases a character study primarily focused on the life and career of a sex worker, but that's all setup to establish who Ani is before Vanya makes his whirlwind entrance. Goofily played by Eydelshteyn as an unpredictable livewire, he initially seems no different to her than other clients, at least until arriving at the mansion. It would be easy see this as a con, with Vanya manipulating Ani to get a green card while she's after his money. But Baker has something a lot more complex in mind.
Even if there's an underlying element of subconscious manipulation going on, the pair do forge a superficial connection that makes us want to believe in them as much as Ani. Plus, the immature, rascally Vanya isn't smart enough to think through any scheme, especially when his primary hobbies consist of partying, drugs and playing video games. But between his disposable wealth and fun loving attitude, the proposal still seems like a can't miss deal for Ani, who thinks she just punched a one-way ticket out of prostitution. Unfortunately, the carefree obliviousness that makes Vanya such a safe bet is what ends up derailing her life.
What starts as a knock at the door from unwelcome intruders turns into this fight sequence so uproarious it could be mistaken for a Home Alone sequel, as these hired guns arrive to forcibly end a marriage Vanya probably would have sunk on his own anyway. The oafish Garnik and Igor botch a job that only worsens when their equally flustered boss arrives on the scene to discover Ani's more of a handful than they assumed. Armenian actor Karagulian's turn as Toros might be the film's most underappreciated, as his completely flustered character barges onto the scene totally unprepared, his priceless reactions and explosive outbursts stealing the show. And yet his angry ramblings can't be completely written off, forcing us to consider that everything he tells Ani about Vanya may be true.
It's only when Ani's dragged along on their loony search for Vanya that she gets an inkling of her new husband's cowardly true colors. Waiting for him to reemerge from hiding as a responsible adult willing to stand with her against his family is a lost cause. But that's a reality she'll need to see on her own once his parents enter the picture because their treatment of this say a lot. Madison's work reaches its fever pitch upon Ani fully recognizing what she avoided seeing all along, even if it's painfully clear this couldn't have gone another way.
The three men tasked with resolving this debacle aren't especially prepared or invested. A discombobulated Toros flies off the handle, his brother Garnik is incompetent and the quiet, contemplative Igor hovers in the background, making awkward small talk with Ani when he's not physically restraining her. But we do get indications he's not like his two accomplices and would far rather sit this out. And boy does Borisov's performance sneak up on you, burning slowly until taking a pivotal turn late in the game, transforming how we see Ani, and ultimately, how she views herself.
Fighting an unwinnable battle, Ani commits to leaving with her dignity intact, even as everything else falls apart. And with Baker hiding his biggest twist in plain sight the entire time, we have to peel ourselves away from this electrically charged chaos long enough to see it. The controversial final scene is a gut punch, as Ani expresses gratitude with the only transactional currency she knows, hating herself in the process. Devastating but still not the saddest of all possible outcomes, Anora leaves audiences contemplating how Ani's future very much remains in her own hands.
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