Presented in competition at the Cannes Festival, Anora narrates the fulcruming ascent of a young stripper in Brooklyn who sees her life change after dancing for a client son of an oligarch. Anora redraws the maps of human relations in the form of an emotional Russian mountain. While she agrees to marry this young son to Dad who leads a life of lust, the Russian family sees their union with another eye. The latter is determined to make the marriage go wrong. Whatever it takes...
Babylon circus
We read here and there that Anora was the ashtrel of modern times. Either people haven't read the story in a long time, or they're reducing the last movie of Sean Baker to a story of love and charming prince disenchanted, which would be misleading. Because if it's the frantic eruption of Anora into the luxury and decadence of desolated little heirs, the film has nothing to do with a blue flower romance and that's what makes it so interesting. Anora has an explosive temperament and seizes opportunities without any strategy. Of course, she sees this marriage proposal as a window to another life. Yet, unlike Cinderella, Anora There is nothing of a miserabilistic story. And Sean Baker's film is rather the modern negative of Pretty Woman. In addition, even though she has stars in her eyes, this Bronx stripper is far from being a sprained babe. She never loses her dignity.
This young woman played by Mikey Madison exposes many clichés about the look on others, starting with the job of stripper, but not only, as a certain Igor incarnate by Yuriy Borisov that we already knew about his role in Petrov's Fever (read our critical). Not shy in sex scenes, far from there, Sean Baker amuses to gild this world of glitter in the first part to better do back in the second. Her partner who pays her first as an escort is played by Mark Eydelshteyn who embraced his role at heart. A childish and unbearable figure who has everything from a rotten child spoiled like the great fortunes produce by shovel. It's all due to him when he's nothing, as the meritocracy wants. In brief socks when he welcomes Anora, this is the prototype of the loser but with a well-stocked wallet. Deprived of the obligations proper to the common mortals, it serves for Anora from social elevator to an excess life, moreover heavily remunerated.
« For Anora, her nakedness is also a costume. »
Sean Baker is customary in margins. He had already filmed trans prostitutes on Hollywood sidewalks in his film Tangerine (2015). Then with The Florida Project (2017), he described the difficult life of a mother and her daughter who lived in a motel just steps away from Disney World. This time the American director has clearly wanted to elevate this world from the jet-set. Unaccessible and depraved, this medium filmed in full light finds its consecration in Las Vegas. In the world of the night, night clubs and infusions to keep up with the rhythm of decadence are emerging an artificial world or anything is possible while being in advance overfait. This night world that few know, Sean Baker tells it as close as possible to the real. Like a glass cap ready to collapse at the slightest impact, the vice city is the scene for all experiences.
A aromatic film?
Hard to define the kind ofAnora who flirts between romantic comedy and drama like Cohen brothers. Because past the debauchery of the first hour, we savor the invasion of two « Handmen » Under the orders of the father. Their mission: to cancel the marriage as soon as possible. We find this offset side and nickel-plated feet of the film as in the series Fargo To which would be added a third luron, Toros, an Armenian Orthodox priest godfather of the terrible child. This shock trio offers its lot of comic scenes, they that were expected as first-hand villains.
But in spite of the appearances, Anora does not lack a punch to defend herself, on the contrary. The young woman has her tongue hanged well and does not hesitate to retaliate or retaliate those who put themselves in the way. And when the film derails towards the disaster operation to repair the broken pots, Sean Baker delights us with tricky situations while leaving room, in contrast, for sensitive scenes where the fairy tale collapses. Even if Anora does not lack a reply, it is above all through her body that she expresses herself. A facade that we know only too well and that finds all its symbolism during its magnificent epilogue. By marrying records with intelligence, Anora is a pleasure of every moment and a pomegranate unloaded that is expected to explode at any time. Without hesitation one of the most beautiful works in competition on the cruise, Anora is a serious candidate to take the golden palm to Emilia Perez (read our critical).
[...] Special prize awarded at the closing ceremony even if the film Anora (read our review) did not demerit. Congratulations also to his young interpreters who could have [...]
[...] denounced him with poetry All We imagine as Light. The same was true of the palm of Anora, a burning feminist plea armored with humor about sex workers. In his latest [...]
I look forward to reading it when I can see it!!