Sean Baker's Oscar-winning "Anora" presents a peculiar paradox of contemporary cinema: a film celebrated for its supposed boundary-pushing that ultimately offers little beyond its taboo subject matter. At 139 minutes, Baker's tale of a sex worker who briefly marries into Russian wealth before facing brutal rejection stretches a thin premise far beyond its natural breaking point. Mikey Madison delivers a performance of remarkable depth, finding nuanced humanity in a character that the screenplay itself seems uninterested in fully exploring. Her work transcends the material, suggesting emotional complexities the script merely gestures at. Madison deserves every accolade for creating a compelling person where the screenplay offers only a situation. The film's moments of genuine comedy provide welcome relief but highlight the fundamental problem: "Anora" mistakes setting (sex work) for substance. When compared to Jean-Luc Godard's "Vivre sa Vie," which used prostitution as a lens to examine profound questions of autonomy, capitalism, and gender, Baker's film feels superficial. Godard achieved more philosophical depth in 83 minutes than Baker manages in over two hours. Contemporary cinema increasingly confuses progressive subject matter with progressive thinking. Merely depicting marginalized experiences without offering fresh insight or formal innovation becomes a hollow exercise. One cannot help but wonder whether "Anora" received accolades for what it attempted to say rather than what it actually achieved. The central narrative - a woman from difficult circumstances discovering she can be loved for herself - is neither original nor developed with particular insight. What might have been a focused, powerful short film instead becomes a meandering feature that suggests profundity without delivering it. Baker's technical competence is evident, but technical skill alone cannot disguise the absence of a compelling artistic vision. "Anora" ultimately represents cinema that has forgotten the difference between depicting life and illuminating it.

I hope it would be nice, it was not, just chaotic vocal 2h fight

<em>'Anora'</em> 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 <em>'The Substance'</em> 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!