Did you watch the movie "Pretty Woman" with Richard Gere and Julia Roberts? You don’t have to answer that – I’m sure you have! It’s been 35 years, and the cinematic world has been captivated by a new Cinderella story featuring a prostitute – the Oscar-winning melodrama “Anora.”

The film’s triumph is total: in addition to the Best Picture Oscar, it snagged awards for Directing, Screenplay, Editing, and Best Actress. Just yesterday, the little-known Mikey Madison snatched the crown from the veteran actress Demi Moore, almost like a reenactment of the plot of “Substance.” And the independent director Sean Baker is the first since Walt Disney to win four Oscars in a single year.

Such success doesn’t happen by accident. Critics have sacrificed every other possible triumph at its altar, starting with “Conclave” – a film about the paradox of faith, to “Brutalist” – tackling Nazism and Jews, and ending with the body horror “Substance” that I previously discussed. Serious themes, strong films – yet here we have what seems like a cliché plot, piled high with clichés.

So, is there some meaning in all this? Let’s try to find it, too.

I think you don’t need me to remind you of the plot of “Pretty Woman” from 1990.

It’s a story of a prozzie Cinderella, taking place in 2025. This time, her name is Anora. It’s an Uzbek name, and she’s not too thrilled about it, asking to be called Eni instead – something more American-sounding. She meets her prince at the ball – in a noisy New York strip club, where Cinderellas cater to clients not just on the main stage but also in private rooms.

The prince turns out to be a Russian named Ivan. In some ways, he’s a prince: the son of a Russian oligarch, living off the earnings of his parents. In other ways, he’s just a fool: clueless, incapable of doing anything on his own, completely dependent on his family.

This wild kid falls for Eni, showers her with luxury, and promises to love her with premium service. They head to Las Vegas to have some fun and end up spontaneously getting married.

It seems like the couple is happy, at least until Vanya's parents find out about the engagement. Unsurprisingly, they’re not too thrilled with their son’s choice and quickly send their "sixes" to deal with Vanya and Anora. The mission is clear: set their wayward child back on the right path and get rid of the daughter-in-law with dubious social standing.

Now, let’s do a little comparison.

The prince in the 1990 version, Edward Lewis, is a real powerhouse businessman who’s made it all on his own. He’s charming and good-looking. He comes to Los Angeles to wrap up a major deal, but when it comes to emotions and relationships, he’s a mess. He’s a high-strung control freak who doesn’t think about feelings, living under the pressure of a rigid “must,” with zero room for spontaneity.

In "Anora," the prince is a carefree Zoomer, an immature adult—one of those who live it up at someone else's expense, dreaming of honeymooning in Disneyland while being terrified of responsibility. So far, all he’s succeeded at is using drugs—both the light and heavy stuff—and playing video games.

The ones who have real influence in this family are his parents (Aleksei Serebryakov and Darya Yekamasova). Sure, Vanya might complain about having to “work for his damn dad’s company,” but the idea of finding his own path doesn’t even cross his mind!

Cinderella, 1990s style, is a long-legged, sexy Vivienne - a classic supermodel look of that era. I mean, after that movie, the sales of thigh-high boots must have skyrocketed! She honestly acknowledges who she is to herself and to those around her. But she’s not thrilled about her profession and craves a different life.

She bumps into the prince (Edward) on Hollywood Boulevard in the Red Light District, where he accidentally wanders and Vivienne helps him find his way. Vivienne genuinely falls in love with the “prince,” if only because it’s impossible not to!

The 2025 version of Cinderella isn’t as beautiful, sexy, or refined. She’s a total outcast in every sense – from her job (sex worker) to her background (an Uzbek in America, representing a minority). So, as they say, the national features are certainly evident...Is she really enchanted by Vanya? Probably not, considering her life and professional experience! How blind (or willfully naive) do you have to be not to see his emptiness and dependency? But instead of calculating her life with him even a couple of steps ahead, she chooses to stay in illusions and enter this seemingly advantageous marital adventure.

"We're all like products here," sings Mnogoznaal in the song Z-pam.

In a society where everything is bought and sold, how do people relate to each other? Right —like consumers to products. They try to sell their resources (read: "stocks") at the best price — power, beauty, status, money. They look for advantageous deals in everything.

Here’s one: Vanya is buying Anora. But the exchange is inherently unequal, and therefore doomed to fail.

What marks true art for me? That is in experiencing the storyline after which the character undergoes transformation. The experience is lived and absorbed—life will never be the same again.

In "Pretty Woman," everything falls into place. Both characters undergo a transformation, with Edward (Richard Gere) starting the film as tense, closed off, and cynical. Thanks to Vivian (Julia Roberts), he seems to come alive! Life is painted in new colors. Work and making money take on meaning; they stop being mere ends in themselves and a disguise from reality. Vivian begins to understand her worth and learns to make her own choices. By the end, she walks away from Edward on her own. If he wants to come after her, that's his choice.

It’s a stark contrast in "Anora."
The protagonist is the same throughout the entire film: a vicious, foul-mouthed diva. The "perks" of a glamorous life don't improve her character. Instead, losing all of that leads to an aggressive meltdown. What disturbs her more? The crushed love and humiliation? Or the loss of her luxurious home, clothes, cars, and entertainment? Although in the final scene, something real starts to awaken within her…

Similarly, Vanya seems to prove with his actions that he doesn’t want to change anything; he feels like a worthless infant, lacking control over his life. Though unconsciously rebelling, he chooses a wife who's the complete opposite of his mother: a stripper and a prostitute, someone troubled and in need, who hangs on his every word and is willing to submit. What kind of development can there be when everything's already been decided for both parties?

In the classic version of Cinderella, the messy girl marries the prince and lives happily ever after. Something similar happens in "Pretty Woman". But in "Anora," the rich prince doesn’t save the heroine. He buys her like a toy and then tosses her aside without a second thought—the love story inevitably turns into a farce with a marriage annulment. Interestingly, the ending of "Pretty Woman" was initially conceived to be less positive. The film was supposed to be titled "Three Thousand Dollars," which is exactly the amount Edward paid Vivian. At the end, the character would leave Vivian, leaving her with a generous payout.

What do you think of that ending? I feel a rebellion inside me because, given how things unfold, a happy ending seems like the only logical outcome.

When Annie is fighting for her happiness—kicking, biting, and literally demolishing everything around her—I’m just dying to see how she navigates her way to victory. But I can’t shake the feeling that it’s not going to end well! At this point, I really don’t want a fairytale ending like “they lived happily ever after.”

You’ve got this image in your head – like, for example, Annie strolling hand in hand with Vanya through Disneyland, and his parents are footing the bill for it all?
Well, not for me!

The American Dream isn’t looking so glossy anymore. And it’s not as American as it used to be…

Let’s not forget who Vivien and Edward are from “Pretty Woman.” They’re as American as it gets, with all the perks that come with the classic American Dream in the end. America is a land of opportunity! Change yourself! Transform! Pull yourself up from rock bottom! Take life into your own hands, and happiness will come!

In the end, I’d like to touch on another issue.
Vanya’s father is part of the first generation of Russian entrepreneurs. They spent their lives "jumping higher than their heads," and as a result, created solid assets, and now it's time to pass them down to the heirs. The question is—who to? Kids like Vanya—nice enough, but pretty useless?..

In the financial world, there’s a saying: "Every fourth generation goes out in one shirt." This isn’t a fabrication; it's statistics that have been proven across many countries: the first generation earns, the second spends and enjoys life, the third blows it all, and the fourth ends up naked—well, or starts earning again… And that’s in the best-case scenario.

Vanya's case is even sadder: there’s a risk that the second generation could end up completely without a shirt. If something happens to his parents, I wouldn’t bet a dime that Vanya would stay afloat…

Watching this whole story unfold, it’s hard not to ask that question. And what does happiness even mean?

If we take the movie’s message to heart, it’s not about money or status. Just look at the oligarchs—they have all that wealth, but it doesn’t guarantee happiness. So maybe happiness is freedom: being true to who you are? Maybe it’s about being honest with yourself?

In that sense, not a single character is truly free.

Any isn’t free by definition; she’s an object, something to be bought. Sure, she chose this job, but that choice was more forced than it seemed. Ivan’s fate is also predetermined by his birth into a wealthy family. The harsh realities of his parents’ upbringing in the ruthless '90s left no room for reflection on how to raise worthy successors. So here we are: what grew up, grew up...

It turns out that unfreedom is a sickness that affects the entire society, from the poor to the rich, and men and women alike…

The only glimmer of freedom appears in the final scene. The masks have dropped, and the expectations have run dry.

Let these rich folks shatter Anora's dream of being the prince's wife. But in losing that, she stumbled upon a living human gaze – the gaze of the hero, Yura Borisov. Maybe for the first time in her adult life, someone looked at her not coldly and judgmentally, but with warmth and humanity.

In that moment of maximum vulnerability, Anora saw herself through his eyes. She saw not an object, but a living person.

Both films fit the classic genre, cinema that speaks to everyone. At first glance, they feature typical cinematic and social archetypes (sex workers, gangsters, businessmen, servants, rich kids…). But if you look closer, real people and relationships emerge from all of that.

Everything is alive and in motion. Today, it's nothing like it was in my youth.

The hit by Garry Marshall with Julia Roberts is about achieving the American Dream and Cinderella stepping up with her Prince. Sean Baker's hit, winner of the latest Oscar, is about shattering illusions and the darkness at the end of the tunnel.

Princes have become more childish, and princesses – less leggy… Is this nostalgia?
I think I’ll rewatch "Pretty Woman"….