By Leonardo Salazar
Tejano Tribune Film Critic
If you like independent movies with an amazing story line and interesting characters with incredible developments, then you will love “Anora.”
The independent filmmaker Sean Baker (who you might know for “The Florida Project” or “Red Rocket”) just released his new film. “Anora” tells the story of Ani Mikheeva (but everyone calls her Anora), a sex worker of New York who, one day, meets Ivan, a Russian guy, son of rich parents.
They have chemistry, and Ivan becomes a regular client. Everything escalates to the point that Ivan proposes, Anora accepts and they get married. The problem is that when Ivan’s parents (very, very powerful people) learn of the marriage, they try to cancel it.
For me, this film represents two things; first, the moments of extreme joy and happiness and how all can be over in an instant. After Anora meets Ivan and they begin seeing each other more and more, finally forming an “official” relationship, we are seeing how Anora’s life starts to get better. In one long scene that shows Anora and Ivan’s marriage and the after party, we are seeing a whole joyful celebration that truly seems like it will always be like this.
But, as the story advances and the problems begin, we see how from one minute to another, everything breaks down to sadness, worry, madness, and disappointment. It looks like those joyful and happy scenes were just layers to cover something that, in reality, is sad and disappointing. I think this can also is representing in the final scene, how we pass from one moment of pleasure that should represent happiness, and in that same instant, we pass to another moment where characters break down and cry.
I think it’s also interesting to analyze how the film explores the unfairness that exists in the world between social classes. Anora is just a sex worker in the streets of New York, while Ivan’s family has gotten rich trafficking illegal weapons. If you think about it, both sides are outside of the margins of the law, but everything goes worst for Anora.
Of all the bad things that happen in the film, the worst goes to Anora, she’s the most humiliated, the most disappointed, the saddest, the one the others are criticizing the most, and the one who’s passing the worst time. And why? Because Ivan’s family is rich and powerful while Anora is not. And despite Anora not being at fault, she suffers the worst because her position is nothing compared to the Russian family … something totally unfair that Anora has to deal with and probably has to deal with the rest of her life.
I give “Anora” 5 out 5 stars, top recommendation.
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