By Jared Rasic
I went into this past weekend fully intending to see “Red One,” that new movie in which The Rock, Chris Evans, and a polar bear have to rescue a kidnapped (and completely jacked) Santa Claus. But then I realized that, ultimately, that movie is probably as critic-proof as it possibly gets. You don’t need me to tell you whether it’s worth your time because if you’ve seen the trailer, you absolutely already know if it’s for you or not. I’m sure it’s fun and probably at least a little entertaining, but it’s doubtful there’s much to really decode from it.
‘Anora’ is currently playing in theaters.
So, instead, I figure we’ll all gain something more from a look at three of the high-profile independent movies that are in many early discussions about the upcoming Oscars.
This time of year, studios release their award contenders, those must-see don’t-miss movies for people who care about those sorts of things. The movie that seems to have the year’s most Oscar buzz so far is “Anora,” the new film from Sean Baker, the indie auteur behind stone classics like “Tangerine” and “The Florida Project.”
Baker is a hell of a filmmaker whose output so far has almost exclusively unpacked different aspects of sex work from the viewpoint of lower/middle-class societal exiles. “Anora” is easily Baker’s most “mainstream” film so far, which is saying a lot since it’s still a 139-minute romantic dramedy that effortlessly flits between gritty drama, screwball comedy, and crime thriller.
“Anora” won the Palme d’Or at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, joining the ranks of films like “Parasite,” “Paris, Texas,” “Taxi Driver,” “Pulp Fiction” and “Apocalypse Now” in the prestigious club of cinematic greats. While on the surface, “Anora” is a somewhat more realistic take on “Pretty Woman,” the film looks at the toll that life takes on a young woman who meets a wealthy young Russian who wants to pay her lots of money for her company. What seems glamorous and exciting at first begins to curdle in ways we don’t even recognize at first, and while the film is fun and fast-paced, it’s also exhausting on an almost spiritual level while still never succumbing to nihilistic musing on the state of the world.
“Anora” is ridiculously entertaining at its worst and profoundly moving at its best. It features an astonishing performance from Mikey Madison as Anora. It’s not my favorite film of the year so far, but it definitely belongs in the top 10.
Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield star in ‘We Live in Time,’ which is currently available on demand.
Another movie sitting pretty with awards buzz is “We Live in Time,” a romantic drama featuring two full-blown movie star performances from Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield as a couple that we follow over a decade. Pugh and Garfield have such easy-going chemistry that feels so lived in and effortless that even though the story is something we’ve seen a million times before, they’re so impossibly charming to watch that we’re swept along anyway. With these two central performances and surprisingly deft and subtle direction from John Crowley, “We Live in Time” film feels like an old-fashioned melodrama in both positive (stirring, moving) and negative (cheesy, manipulative) ways. Aside from the non-chronological storytelling, it’s such a conventional film that it’s hard to believe A24 released it. Still, it feels like the kind of film we don’t get much of anymore, so it’s easy to be romanced by the whole thing.
Barry Keoghan stars in Andrea Arnold’s new film, ‘Bird,’ which is currently in theaters.
Also sharing some of the buzz is the new film from English auteur Andrea Arnold, “Bird,” starring Barry Keoghan (he left “Gladiator II” to make this), just as grimy here as he was in “Saltburn,” but with 100 percent less bathtubs. “Bird” follows 12-year-old Bailey (played by the natural and moving Nykiya Adams), who lives in a falling-to-pieces slum in Kent, surrounded by adults much less mature than her. With her drug-dealing father (played by the phenomenal Keoghan) bringing endless chaos to her life, Bailey exists between a state of gritty immediacy and magical realism that keeps “Bird” feeling like a work of pure originality.
Arnold films most of “Bird” handheld, so the intensity of the filmmaking is belayed by Bailey still accessing her childhood wonder, creating multiple moments that feel spontaneous and perfectly formally executed. It’s bravura filmmaking from the fearless Arnold, who expands the breadth of her filmmaking language here to make me wonder if there’s anything she can’t do. The film itself is so tonally all over the place that it initially felt jarring, but it won me over by the end. “Bird” is strange and singular in a way only Arnold could have achieved.
I’m unsure if any of these three movies will win top prizes at the Oscars (although “Anora” has the best chance). Regardless, these three works deserve your consideration—even without the polar bears.
“Anora” — Grade: A-
“We Live in Time” — Grade: B
“Bird” — Grade: B+
