THB #608: About "Anora"

I waited for a second look at Anora before writing about it. I saw it again with a paying audience, which is always a different feeling than a media/industry screening. And as I walked out, I knew that I didn’t really want to write “a review” of the film.

I really like the film a lot. I am a Sean Baker fan. I am a committed Better Things fan, so Mikey Madison wasn’t hard to connect with, even after her over-the-top turn in the Tarantino film. And I love the pro/non-pro/semi-pro cast of actors that Baker put together, What a group! Karren Karagulian, who plays Toros, is a Baker regular. Mark Eydelshteyn, as young Ivan, is magic. Vache Tovmasyan as Garnick is like a 1940s comedy heavy. And Yura Borisov has that sneaky Ewn McGregor-like charm from the first shot.