--- title: "Anora: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/anora/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/anora" critics_score: 86 critics_reviews: 18 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Anora (2024): what the critics said Critics' score 86 from 18 reviews: 18 positive, 0 mixed, 0 negative. The reviews are unusually of one mind. All eighteen are positive, and the lowest sits only a little below the rest, so the spread is narrow. The praise clusters on Mikey Madison, whom most critics describe as a star-making lead: brash, fiery and vulnerable underneath, and the reason the film stays sympathetic through its noisier stretches. Sean Baker’s direction draws the next warmest notices, particularly his blend of screwball comedy with a humane character study, and the long home-invasion sequence is picked out more than once as the set piece. Several critics point to the final scene as the moment the farce gives way to something sobering. Reservations are few and mild: The Hollywood Reporter and The Wrap both think it runs long, and Little White Lies feels it loses its way slightly in the second half. Deadline is the coolest of the group, though still clearly approving. ## The Times — Ed Potton Rating ★★★★★. 30 October 2024. A vibrant and hilarious tale of subcultural hustling and a deserved Palme d’Or winner. Mikey Madison delivers a chutzpah-filled, Oscar-worthy performance with well-disguised vulnerability, capped by a sobering final scene. [Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/film/article/anora-film-review-mikey-madison-xp2vn8tlc) ## Time Out — Dave Calhoun Rating 5/5. 22 May 2024. Festival review. Sean Baker’s darkly funny sex-work screwball is a blast, full of wild energy and compassion, with a brilliant central performance that keeps viewers on Team Ani. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/anora-review-2024) ## The Guardian Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 3 November 2024. Baker’s screwball Cinderella tale is frenetic, funny, fiery and profane, vaulting him towards greatness with deft handling and ambition. Mikey Madison gives a performance for the ages as the flawed, fearsome heroine. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/nov/03/anora-review-sean-baker-screwball-cinderella-tale-vaults-him-towards-greatness-mikey-madison) ## The i Paper — Christina Newland Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 1 November 2024. The critic hails it as gorgeous, deranged and one of the films of the year, singling out Mikey Madison's sparky, vulnerable and real breakout performance as the perfect fit for Baker's unpredictable rags-to-riches tale. [Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/anora-review-gorgeous-deranged-films-of-year-3350053) ## Empire — Beth Webb Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 29 October 2024. The critic praises the film as an intoxicating frenzied fairy tale and tender character study, highlighting Baker's humanistic filmmaking and Mikey Madison's blazing, assured lead performance as its biggest triumph. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/anora/) ## Evening Standard — Maddy Mussen Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 3 March 2025. The critic deems it a flawless anti-Cinderella story, praising Mikey Madison's overwhelmingly good, star-making performance that balances humour and thoughtfulness while delivering a moving, laugh-a-minute experience with a poignant sting. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/anora-review-mikey-madison-sean-baker-oscars-b1187352.html) ## Los Angeles Times — Glenn Whipp Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 16 October 2024. Sean Baker’s lively comedy about a stripper’s fairy-tale romance crashing down delivers madcap energy and control, standing as his best film, with a star-making turn from Mikey Madison that earns strong rooting interest. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2024-10-16/anora-review-sean-baker-mikey-madison-cannes) ## Financial Times — Danny Leigh Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 31 October 2024. Energy fizzes through this anti-Cinderella story with barely controlled chaos and vérité. Mikey Madison gives a bristlingly real, star-making performance as a force-of-nature dancer. [Read the review](https://www.ft.com/content/7b8fa865-a8f8-4c93-b54b-f05947439985) ## Little White Lies — David Jenkins Rating 4/4/4. 29 October 2024. Baker’s anti-rom-com offers a hypermodern critique of class and geopolitics through a sex worker’s whirlwind romance with a Russian nepo baby, with strong performances and energetic direction, though it loses its way slightly in the latter half. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/anora) ## Total Film — James Mottram Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 21 May 2024. Festival review. The critic calls it another hugely enjoyable ride from Sean Baker, commending the no-holds-barred comedy-drama, electric lead performance by Mikey Madison, and its robust look at class divides with real pathos in the final third. [Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/drama-movies/anora-review/) ## Variety — Peter Debruge Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 21 May 2024. Festival review. Baker’s free-wheeling sex farce about a stripper and oligarch’s son is compulsively entertaining and emotionally rich, reaffirming his talent-spotting with a standout performance from Mikey Madison. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2024/film/reviews/anora-review-sean-baker-1236011025/) ## Film Comment — Rebecca Cleman Baker's Palme d'Or winner is a sharp, humanist look at transactional relationships and the American Dream's illusions, using genre tropes to deliver deeper emotional truths. The critic singles out the final scene's raw emotional breakdown for puncturing the film's cartoonish energy and rom-com expectations. [Read the review](https://www.filmcomment.com/lifes-a-beach-anora-review/) ## Screen Daily 21 May 2024. Festival review. Sean Baker delivers a wildly entertaining modern-day screwball comedy with a feisty central performance by Mikey Madison as a sex worker in a whirlwind romance disrupted by family interference, full of unruly humour and propulsive pacing. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/anora-cannes-review/5193863.article) ## Sight and Sound 29 October 2024. Festival review. The critic praises Sean Baker’s demolition of the Pretty Woman fantasy through a vivid screwball-tragicomedy centered on a fiery sex worker, highlighting the emotional force of the film’s ending and Baker’s humane approach. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/anora-sean-bakers-demolition-pretty-woman-fantasy-his-most-vivid-creation-yet) ## The Hollywood Reporter — David Rooney 21 May 2024. Festival review. The critic calls it a satisfying screwball comedy about a sex worker's whirlwind romance with an oligarch's son that turns chaotic. Madison's scrappy, sweet-yet-defensive lead performance stands out alongside Baker's vivid milieu and class commentary, though the film could lose some length. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/anora-review-mikey-madison-sean-baker-1235905037/) ## The New York Times — Alissa Wilkinson Rating Critic’s Pick. 17 October 2024. The critic praises Mikey Madison's mesmerizing, career-making performance and notes that the film levels up Sean Baker's work with its confident storytelling. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/17/movies/anora-review.html) ## Den of Geek — David Crow Rating 5/5. 29 September 2024. Mikey Madison delivers a star-making turn in Baker's madcap screwball comedy about a Brooklyn escort and a Russian oligarch's son. The critic highlights Madison's brash charisma and the film's blend of warmth and bleakness as it turns chaotic chases into something humane and entertaining. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/anora-review-mikey-madison-and-sean-baker/) ## /Film — Jacob Hall Rating 9/10. 21 September 2024. Festival review. Anora is probably the best movie of 2024, an instantly towering work that is empathetic, moving, and often just a good time at the movies. The critic singles out the effortless blend of big emotions, thoughtful complexity, and high-stress screwball comedy. [Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/1670305/anora-review-sean-baker-mikey-madison-comedy/) ## Paste — Jesse Hassenger Rating 8.3/10. 27 September 2024. The critic praises Mikey Madison's fiery, committed performance as Ani and Sean Baker's skillful blend of screwball comedy with intimate character study. It highlights the film's nonjudgmental humor, focus on the protagonist's dreams and agency, and tonal balance between farce and melancholy. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/sean-baker/anora-review) ## Film Stories — Maria Lattila Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 1 November 2024. Anora is one of 2024’s best, most entertaining and heartfelt films, blending comedy with a devastating final act. The critic singles out Mikey Madison’s radiant, compelling performance for keeping the film grounded. [Read the review](https://filmstories.co.uk/reviews/anora-review-american-fairytale-gone-wrong/) ## The Skinny — Josh Slater-Williams Rating ★★★★. 28 October 2024. Baker delivers another razor-sharp, empathetic portrait of marginal lives through a screwball romance that subverts Pretty Woman tropes with class solidarity and unpredictability. The critic praises the strong ensemble and Madison's standout performance amid the manic, heartfelt odyssey. [Read the review](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/new-releases/anora) ## The Wrap — Steve Pond Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 21 May 2024. Festival review. The critic finds the film a wildly entertaining and confounding mix of character study, look at the super-rich, and raucous comedy, praising its fun and heart despite its length and genre swings. They single out the hysterical home invasion set piece and the moving coda for praise. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/anora-review-sean-baker/) ## Deadline — Damon Wise Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 21 May 2024. Festival review. The critic praises the film's broad screwball comedy elements and Mikey Madison's fearless performance as Ani, noting the heartbreaking ending that reveals emotional costs. They highlight the pursuit sequence and the lead actress as standout. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2024/05/anora-review-mikey-madison-gives-her-all-in-sean-baker-subversive-screwball-comedy-cannes-film-festival-1235925716/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/anora.md