“Anora”, a tale of strippers and oligarchs, wins at Cannes

AS A FILM-MAKER, Sean Baker is gripped by one subject: the lives of sex workers in America. He has made a string of low-budget—but highly praised—comedy-dramas on the topic, including “Tangerine” (2015), “The Florida Project” (2017) and “Red Rocket” (2021). His latest, “Anora”, a rambunctious farce about a stripper, had its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival this year. What makes Mr Baker’s work unique is that he balances deeply researched, down-to-earth naturalism with humour and humanity. What could be depressing stories about the downtrodden or the marginalised are instead fizzily entertaining.

You can understand, then, why his work might appeal to Greta Gerwig, the co-writer and director of “Barbie”, who led the judging panel in Cannes. Announcing the Palme d’Or, the festival’s top prize, on May 25th, Ms Gerwig called “Anora” “truthful and unexpected” and compared it to the polished comedies of Ernst Lubitsch, the director of “Ninotchka”, and Howard Hawks (“Bringing Up Baby”, “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes”). In her own films, including “Lady Bird” (2017) and “Little Women” (2019) as well as “Barbie”, Ms Gerwig has told wry stories of young women seeking fulfilment and independence. Like Mr Baker, she is interested in the ways in which protagonists’ options are shaped and narrowed by forces beyond their control.