Sean Baker is undoubtedly a skilled filmmaker. Technically, I think he makes some of the most masterful choices—ones I have deeply ired and been inspired by for almost a decade. But, unfortunately, Anora just didn’t do it for me.

I tried so hard to like it—to connect with it substantively—but, frankly, I feel like it was made for a specific demographic and because I’m not a part of that demographic, I was left craving so much more. 

I don’t think it’s a “bad” film. I think that perhaps it does what it set out to do—which is mainly, I believe, to depict the impact of the sexualization of women (and sex workers) in the West and the roles men and the patriarchy play in that—both negatively and positively. And it does this very well.

That isn’t an easy or unimportant thing to do, nor is it frequently explored in Hollywood with such a degree of technical, thematic, or narrative thoughtfulness and expertise—at least not by men in positions of power and esteem like Baker. But just because it does a lot of things skillfully and may very well alter brain chemistry and ignite real, necessary, change among viewers, I can’t help but feel this film neglects the very person it postures itself to be about.

Sure, Anora isn’t entirely two dimensional, but what do we really know about her? Subtlety in film works for me. In fact, I love that shit. But it works when there is more depth and centralization of the protagonist, and I just didn’t get that here. Maybe that’s the point—how centralized men are to her character and her life—but even still, that isn’t enough for me. I want to know who she is beyond what she does and the (personally obvious) ways that impacts how she navigates the world. I know we don’t need backstory or heavy exposition when we can learn about who she is by her choices, but they still felt insufficient in adding to her dimensionality.

The final scene was ittedly uncomfortable and moving because it was deeply real and technically beautiful. But it was predictable for me and when it ended I thought, “yes, precisely. Is that it?”

It felt a lot like when men tell you things you already know—particularly about the female experience; It might be news to the men listening around you who have now gained a different perspective—which is great for them and, in turn, the rest of humanity—and because you know this, you nod and smile and take the win that doesn’t entirely feel like a win (because in many ways it’s not). And you sigh, not in relief or utter dissatisfaction, but a third, complex, hard-to-name, in-between thing.

Oh, womanhood!