My favourite thing about Anora is how it captures youthful abandon. Perfectly paced and edited in parts, the soundtrack fits the movie flawlessly, even though I can’t name a single song.

Directed by Sean Baker and winner of the coveted Palme d’Or award at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, Anora is a comedy/drama/romance about a sex worker whose Cinderella story takes quite a turn.

Starring Mikey Madison, Yura Borisov, Mark Eydelshteyn, Paul Weissman and Lindsey Normington, who all, including the rest of the cast, performed flawlessly, I’m glad Anora is getting some due praise. Nevertheless, I can’t say I felt happy about dedicating more than two hours to the film.

It may be true that I’m in my ‘chill only’ era because I found Anora too chaotic and long. Unfortunately, I wanted things to wrap up before the halfway point. I became bored of the tease of who Ivan/Vanya’s parents were, what they do, and precisely why he’s so terrified of them. 

I’m certainly aware that Anora is generally well-received by many. So, as always, if you’re curious enough, definitely give it a chance. It’s not for me, but it may be right up your street, as the saying goes. 

Happy Film Loving,

G