Anora (2024)

'Anora' is an absolute cracker! The film is unadulterated chaos, I honestly needed the silentness of it ending so I could relax. As usual, I'm not one to judge it on its deep-rooted meaning or whatever, I'll leave that to others, all I can say is that it's a blast and I unequivocally loved it.
Mikey Madison's performance is sensational, quite the showing indeed! Apparently I've seen her in three other things (much less prominent roles, admittedly) before, evidently I don't remember her from those - but safe to say, I won't be forgetting Madison from this at any point. Superb!
Away from the star performer, Mark Eydelshteyn makes the most out of his role. The trio of Karren Karagulian, Vache Tovmasyan and Yura Borisov are great comedic support. I've seen Aleksei Serebryakov here and there down the years and he always plays the same roles, I like him though.
The 139 minutes go by in a flash, with the utterly chaotic nature it is no surprise. It isn't the most difficult movie to predict given that you are waiting for the crap to hit the fan, but how it gets to that point is a wild ride to witness - the concluding scene is stand out, too.
I still have three more of the nominees to watch, but this overtakes 'The Substance' as the film that would hypothetically get my vote for Best Picture; not that I take much value from that (or any other) awards ceremony. It'll take some beating!

We’re all familiar with the old adage that, if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. It’s a notion that applies not only to what can happen in everyday life, but also to what shows up on the big screen, as the latest feature from writer-director Sean Baker illustrates. This widely acclaimed indie offering follows the misadventures of a Brooklyn lap dancer/sex worker (Mikey Madison) who falls for the insanely rich, self-absorbed, wildly irresponsible son of a Russian oligarch (Mark Eydelshteyn). Together they take the plunge into an edgy, wacked-out fairy tale, a dark storybook romance strung out on steroids, quaaludes and crack. Their whirlwind affair soon lands them in Las Vegas, culminating in a green card wedding that junior’s mobster parents (Darya Ekamasova, Aleksey Serebryakov) want annulled at any cost, even if it means calling on their oily, bumbling posse of cronies and heavies (Karren Karagulian, Vache Tovmasyan, Yura Borisov) to lean on the alleged lovebirds. But achieving that goal ultimately proves more difficult than imagined. As a cross-country chase ensues, a string of frenzied events leaves mom, dad and friends infuriated and the Gothamite Cinderella disillusioned, having erroneously thought she’d truly hit the jackpot this time. From this, one might easily think this premise has a solid foundation for an outrageous, uproarious comedy, but, sadly, the film lives up to its potential only some of the time. To be sure, there is some genuinely hysterical, wonderfully inventive material here, but it only hits the mark about half the time. What’s more, much of the story (especially in the film’s first half) is predictable, almost clichéd, with some bits dragging on needlessly long. Indeed, I’m somewhat mystified as to what all the critical fuss is about, something perhaps best evidenced by the picture’s capture of the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, the event’s highest honor. I readily admit to being a fan of Baker’s work, having immensely enjoyed his previous efforts “Red Rocket” (2021), “The Florida Project” (2017) and “Tangerine” (2015). But I’m genuinely at a loss to understand the level of praise that’s been lavished on this release. It’s a capable film in a number of respects, but the filmmaker clearly has done better, and those prior offerings make better viewing options in my opinion. Don’t fall for all the hype here, as this really is one of those cases of something being too good to be true.