By Nate Bloom
Contributing Columnist
MIKEY MADISON, 25, and her new film were the total toasts of the just-completed, super-prestigious Cannes Film Festival.
She stars in Anora, the first American film to win the Cannes top award (the Palme D’Or) since 2011. Madison plays Anora.
First, here’s what I know about the actress. Mikey Madison is a stage name. She was born Mikaela Madison Rosberg. She was born and raised in Los Angeles. Her parents are both psychologists.
I don’t know if her family was at all religious. Public records reveal that three of her four grandparents were Jewish. Her maternal grandmother was not Jewish (its possible that she converted).
Madison co-starred in “Liza Liza,” her first feature film, in 2015. This little-seen, coming-of-age romantic film tanked due to a weak script. In 2019, she had a smallish, but very memorable, role in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” a huge hit. She played Sadie, a Manson family teen member. Sadie was one of three family members who Manson sent out to murder celebrities. In real-life, they killed. In the film, the three are “intercepted” by good guys and are killed. Everyone who saw the film will remember the Family member who was killed with a flame thrower — that member was Sadie.
Until now, Madison’s most seen role was in the FX/Hulu series “Better Things.” It ran for five seasons (2016-2020; and 2022). The series was co-created by PAMELA ADLON. She starred as Sam Fox, a Jewish actress who is the single mother of three young daughters.
Madison played Max, Sam’s oldest daughter. Madison didn’t impress me one way or the other in “Better Things” and I think I know why. The series was set out to make us love Sam and we love Sam more as her teen daughters kvetch at her about anything. It’s hard to judge the acting talent of a teen kvetcher.
So, here’s the capsule plot of “Anora.” Anora lives in a part of Brooklyn where many immigrants from former Soviet republics have settled. Anora’s parents came from Uzbekistan, and she picks up some Russian from other immigrant neighbors. As the film opens, Anora is working as a stripper in a nightclub and her boss exploits her as a sex worker to Russian speaking customers.
She meets Vanya for a “date.” He’s the spoiled rich son of a Russian oligarch. They fall in love and they elope. His father is not happy and does “things.”
Almost every review gushes how good “Anora,” the film, is — literate, class-conscious, and sometimes comedic. I could go on. Likewise, the reviews for Madison are just terrific. Its likely a career-making performance.
And a Jewish bonus!!: Vanya is played by Russian actor MARK EYDELSTEIN, 22. He is often called the TIMOTHEE CHALAMET of the Russian screen — he’s a tall, thin, “pretty guy” actor. Reliable sources say that he is at least part Jewish, and he may be “all Jewish.”
“Treasure,” which opens in theaters on June 14, is described as a comedy. Here’s the capsule premise: LENA DUNHAM, 37, plays Ruth, an American journalist who travels to Poland with her father, Edek, to visit his childhood places. But Edek, a Holocaust survivor, resists reliving his trauma and sabotages the trip creating unintentionally funny situations.
British actor (and writer) STEPHEN FRY, 66, plays Edek. Fry’s father wasn’t Jewish and he didn’t learn that his mother was Jewish until he was an adult. He isn’t religious, but does identify as Jewish.
As I noted in my March column, “Treasure” played a Berlin film festival and reviews were not kind. So, I suggest you just wait for it to start streaming.
HANNAH EINBINDER, 29, was a stand-up comedian before she became the co-star (2021) of “Hacks,” an HBO/Max series. “Hacks” was not a total reach for Einbinder — she plays a former stand-up comedian who writes jokes for a much-older, famous female comedian.
Einbinder has snared two Emmy acting nominations for “Hacks” and the show’s a hit. So, HBO/Max is rewarding her with her first (anywhere!) solo comedy special. Entitled “Everything Must Go,” it begins streaming on July 13.
The first time I saw Einbinder was on Stephen Colbert’s show, just before the pandemic hit. She talked about being Jewish in her (short) stand-up bit on “Colbert.” Here’s hoping she does that again.