Anora (also Ani), the prostitute protagonist, portrayed by Mikey Madison in an Oscar winning performance, is Woman Empowered: smart, confident, assertive, fearless and fierce as she navigates her way through the four interwoven dramas that brilliantly structure the movie: the brutal, competitive world of prostitution; her idyllic romance with rich son of Russian Oligarch; her defense of her marriage against the powerful oligarch family; and lastly the subtle, surprise relationship with Igor, who is the heavy, the tough guy for the Russians.
The first 45 minutes of the film is a relentless, graphic barrage of the details of the prostitution trade. I saw more nudity in that time than in the entire 77 years of my life prior to that. It garners the movie a PG75 rating, only for very, very, very mature audiences, those well into senility and the senescence of the libido. However, this does achieve its artistic aim: so manic, mechanical, hyperactive, manipulative; so objectifying and bereft of any tenderness or reverence is all this sex that is becomes "anti-pornographic" in eliciting a visceral repugnance at the indignity of it all. Quite a powerful setting for the unraveling of the plot!
Madison earned her Oscar. But it was the Oscar-nominated performance of Russian actor Yura Borisov as Igor, the henchman, that fascinated me. Handsome, virile, tough, clean-shaven, Slavic...he reminded me of a young Karol Wojtyla (later John Paul II) or John Rapinich (my best friend).. His performance will remain as an icon of the form of virility: humble, quiet, strong, tender, reverent.
He is a humble guy: works for the guy who works for the guy who works for the Oligarch. He is at the bottom of the mob hierarchy.
He is quiet. Says very little. His English is not good. But his role is to be the muscle, not to talk.
He is obviously tough, but in a quiet way. His confidence is serene; he is unflappable. He does not seem to carry a weapon; does not beat anyone up. His presence is important.
But from the first moment in the presence of Anora he looks at her with a quiet but striking tenderness and reverence. He speaks hardly at all. His few words are kind and protective. As she goes into a hysterical rage and bites him he restrains her with a grasp that is at once strong, calm and chaste. Materially, as an employee, he participates in the assault on her and her marriage, but his countenance clearly signals a disapproval, a detachment. Anonymously, he is clearly in her corner. He maintains an impeccable emotional sobriety and serenity even as everyone else surrenders to hysteria, rage, inebriation and lust.
Much of the film is Anora's combat with the Russians. She is lean and small of frame; but so determined and fierce of will that she entirely dominates them. She is David against ten Goliaths. This is especially refreshing since the stereotype of Russian gangsters (in the Gulags, in post-Communist Russia, with Putin) is that they are so evil and powerful that the traditional Italian mafia is a bunch of altar boys by comparison. Her toughness is comedic as it is inspiring.
The kind, protective gestures of Igor are reciprocated by Anora with insults, contempt, and rage. He is unflappable. Sublimely confident. Quiet. Gentle.
He lives in his mother's house and drives his grandmother's car.
His chaste, affectionate reception of Anora is classic and iconic. It recalls Dante's Beatrice and Don Quiote's Dulcinea; as well as Peck/Hepburn in "Roman Holiday," Murray/Johansen in "Lost In Translation," or Ladd/Arthur in "Shane."
She accuses him of wanting to rape her. He smiles and says "I did not want to rape you." She asks "Why." He smiles and says in broken English: "Because I am not a rapist." She pauses; processes this; and then returns to form: "Then you are a faggot-assed bitch!" In her world there are two kinds of men: rapists and faggots. Igor does not fit this world.
The ending of the movie is marvelously ambiguous. There will be no spoiler here. Mikey Madison said in an interview that she has found great variety in interpretation. She thinks the interpretation shows much about the interpreter. For this interpreter, the ending unveils a sublime vision of both the feminine and the masculine. The later as humble, strong, chaste, calm, tender, and reverent. Even in the most lurid chaos and decadence.
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