When I was a teenager, every year my mom and I would embark on a fun challenge–seeing every Best Picture nominee at the Academy Awards. Although we were not always successful in completing these lists, the films I did get to see opened my eyes to what cinema had to offer.
Up until that point, my favorite movies consisted of whatever Pixar had released, and “Forrest Gump.”
Exposure to works from auteurs like Tarantino or Scorsese really opened my eyes to what movies could offer.
Since then, I have endeavored to keep this challenge going. My taste in movies has obviously developed since I was a young teen, so I don’t necessarily agree with the Academy’s yearly lineup. Nevertheless, the challenge always leads to me finding new favorites I wouldn’t have otherwise sought out.
Letterboxd has given me the opportunity over the years to voice my thoughts on films, but I frequently find myself wanting to say more. While some do provide lengthy reviews, Letterboxd is at its core a social app where shorter, snappier reviews thrive.
I thought to myself, why not use this challenge to work on developing longer, more thoughtful reviews?
So, this series of blog posts will feature my thoughts on the 2025 Best Picture nominees. Starting off in alphabetical order, we have “Anora” (2024).
*Spoilers abound, read with caution*
Perhaps the buzziest film of 2024, “Anora” is indie slice-of-life director Sean Baker’s eighth feature length film, and his first real breakthrough into the mainstream.
The hype had built up to an immense degree for me after it won the prestigious top prize, the Palme d’Or, at the Cannes Film Festival.
I had watched another Baker film, “The Florida Project,” a few months before this win and was extremely moved by how tenderly these characters were painted.
Rarely has there been as moving a child performance as Brooklynn Kimberly Prince playing a wonderstruck long-term resident at a vibrant Disney-adjacent motel.
A three-act fairytale, “Anora” tells the story of its titular character, –although she chooses to go by the nickname Ani– a stripper in Brooklyn who gets by with just enough to split a small apartment.
The humdrum of her work-home-sleep-repeat cycle is interrupted when sweet-toothed Ivan, or “Vanya,” appears at the strip club, asking for someone who speaks Russian. Luckily, Ani is Russian-American, and Ivan is instantly smitten. He can’t get enough of Ani.
With the encouragement of a $15,000 payment, Ani joins Ivan as his plus-one for a week of decadence in Las Vegas. Sean Baker frequently edits his own films, and his handiwork is executed with precision in this sequence, hypnotizing the viewer into a euphoric, rhythmic trance not unlike the high we see the couple experience on screen.
Ivan, not wanting this all-American vacation to end, proposes a green card marriage, which after some hesitation, Ani accepts. To the backdrop of a cheesy yet endearing “Take That” remix, Ani and Ivan are married.
It’s the perfect storybook romance, as Ani quits the strip club and the forever-united pair move into Ivan’s mansion, spending most of their time indulging in their love, video games and substances of choice.
This first act is truly one of the best film segments of 2024. Completely immersive, the viewer starts to feel like they are in Ani’s place. Seeing a way out of the paycheck-to-paycheck grind with a real life Prince Charming, you feel as elated as Ani. Once again, Baker treats his characters as humans like few other directors working today.
Such a strong start is what makes the second act especially so disappointing. Ivan’s family in Russia learns of this marriage. Furious that their son would marry a “prostitute,” Ivan’s family sends his godfather Toros (played by Karren Karagulian, a frequent collaborator with Baker) along with two goons to retrieve Ivan.
A Safdie-esque brawl ensues: the henchmen, Igor and Garnik, arrive with orders to annul the marriage; mousy Ivan tries to wriggle his way out of the situation; and Ani, irritated and dumbfounded, just wants to know what’s going on amidst all of the chaos.
The cacophony comes to a conclusion when Ivan makes an Irish (or perhaps Russian) goodbye.
Although I love a good thriller (my favorite movie of all time is “Uncut Gems”), and the high-stakes comedic tension here is objectively well-done, this event unfortunately signals the beginning of the weak link in this film.
By this point, we are attached to Ani, and seeing her crash from her happy ending only draws us closer to her. Baker, however, relegates the tour-de-force, sailor-mouthed Ani to yearn in the backseat of the Russians’ van on their cat-and-mouse chase across New York City.
On this note, I should provide praise where it is due to the best part of the movie, Mikey Madison’s performance.
Normally soft-spoken, Madison crackles with life in this role, demanding every ounce of attention she can get from her screen time. It’s a loud, vulgar performance, but one that shows cracks in a hardened, bold exterior.
With every expletive Ani shouts, a concealed sadness seeps through. The array of emotions demanded here is not something every actor can pull off, and Madison pulling it off at 25 makes it all the more impressive.
I was wanting to see more and more of Ani, to observe how she was coping, but the film insists on genre-switching into a screwball comedy of errors focused on the Russian Three Stooges.
The titular character essentially disappears for a good 30-to-40 minutes of a 140-minute movie. My fellow audience members had a grand time with this, though, which proves the comedy did its job, but in my eyes it felt like a pause on character development for an extended Charlie Chaplin box set commercial.
The exhausted group’s journey concludes when they find Ivan, sloshy and slurring his words, back at Ani’s old strip club.
An initially-relieved Ani quickly finds him aloof and cold. He is no longer putting up any fight; he allows himself to be taken to the courthouse the next morning for annulment. Thankfully, as Ivan returns to Ani, the emotional core returns to the movie. Ani has been given a fight to win.
With the arrival of his domineering mother and the rest of his family, the golden retriever energy of Ivan has evaporated, and he is left with a sulking, momma’s boy core.
We are unclear what Ani’s true feelings are in this relationship. Does she love Ivan? Does she love his money? Does she love the escapism?
One thing is clear: Ani is steadfast in staying with Ivan, innocently planning out the conversation she’ll have with his parents like a hometown date on “The Bachelor.”
By this point, the romance-turned-thriller has now become a tragedy. Ivan’s family refuses to hear Ani out and views her as a lower-class other. Ivan fully reveals himself as the antagonist, belittling Ani for ever thinking this marriage was genuine. The class commentary is blatant-yet-effective here, all thanks to the ever-sympathetic Madison.
The denouement, which I will leave unspoiled, is one of heightened emotions, one that truly devastates despite the dawdling meat of the film. Baker sticks the landing after stumbling a bit, leaving the viewer with two questions: is transactional love still true love, and what do you do when transaction is the only way you’ve experienced love?
Albeit imperfect, “Anora” is still a worthwhile time at the movies. Baker perhaps should spend time in the editing room practicing trimming fat, as clearly he has rhythm, sympathy and humanity pretty much perfected.
