Filmography Worship: Ranking Every Sean Baker Film
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
Filmography Worship is a series where we review every single feature of filmmakers who have made our Wall of Directors (and other greats)
From champion of independent cinema through and through, to the most accoladed person for a single film in Academy Awards history. New Jersey native Sean Baker has helped put do-it-yourself indie films back on the map in the face of billion-dollar film franchises and saturated flicks. Baker worked as a projectionist and a taxi driver while earning his BFA from the Tisch School of the Arts; Baker also learned how to edit films at The New School in Greenwich Village. It wasn’t all smooth sailing from that point on, as Baker spent decades honing his craft through low-budget indie projects. His main focus was a centralized study on the neglected members of society: communities in the United States that aren’t talked about remotely enough. He spotlights people who are down on their luck and have to make tough decisions in order to survive, including sex workers, delivery people, and hustlers. Like the Italian neo-realists and British kitchen sink dramatists before him, Baker casts non-professional actors to inject authentic, unromanticized testimonies in his films. As if John Waters ever aimed to evoke the tragedy within the films of the Dardenne brothers, Baker not only tries to make celebrities out of the least appreciated people in America: he wants to give them life and have them understood.
Baker employs a hands-on approach to his films, almost always directing, producing, writing, and even editing his films himself (he does work with collaborators when writing and, once, directing). While tackling a new region of the United States with each project, Baker is always honing in on the issues that affect the nation as a whole while exploring the complexities of these differing neighbourhoods. While working almost exclusively with low budgets, Baker has experimented with shooting films pseudo-documentary style, and even making a motion picture exclusively with iPhones. Now that Baker’s name is big enough to attract a bigger budget, the sky feels like the limit for the grassroots auteur. However, if anyone would stick to their guns even in the face of fame and fortune, it would be Baker, who has always utilized the confinements of indie cinema to tell stories. Should he change or remain the same is up in the air. Before either happens, let us celebrate the Baker of now. Including shorts, here are all of the films of Sean Baker ranked from worst to best.
11. Hi-Fi
It feels a little insincere to even include Hi-Fi: a five minute short film made back in 2000 that involves nothing more than teenagers in a car driving to a destination and exploring their hedonistic dopamine fixes (from the innocent, like having a make-out session, to the dangerous, like shooting up). While this film doesn’t say a whole lot, it does show quite a bit while leaning into the topics of conversation that Baker would explore in full later on in his career, including the self-destructive ways we try to find happiness when society is already tearing us apart (society allows us to finish the job). I won’t judge Hi-Fi too much because doing so would feel like I would be critiquing a whole buffet based on one hors d’oeuvre, but — if I am ranking every Baker film — I would have to place Hi-Fi last just because there’s very little to take away from here. I wouldn’t necessarily call it bad. But then…
10. Four Letter Words
Baker’s debut feature film, Four Letter Words, is actually quite a shaky release that I’d call the only objectively bad film of his; now, I have ranked Hi-Fi lower because it is so short that there is barely anything I can take away from it, and Four Letter Words does have its moments to shine, but this film is quite the unvarnished, unrealized look at toxic masculinity. As we follow a group of juvenile men and listen to their obsessions with sex and other pleasures, Four Letter Words reveals itself to be an attempt at having us wonder what the end of our chasing of pursuits is; in reality, Four Letter Words kind of just makes me want to go home because I cannot fathom being around these “dudes” for much longer. With an ending that adds a bit of clarification to the entire film and a few moments that remind me of what Baker would succeed at portraying better later on in his career, Four Letter Words isn’t entirely awful, but it is a misfire; I’d recommend this one only for Baker completionists who want to see an early foundation of a contemporary provocateur.
9. Khaite FW21
As silly as it may seem, I actually love the short film that Baker made for the Khaite Fall/Winter 2021 fashion collection. It’s mainly an advertisement, sure, but — in the same way that he did with Mikey Madison, Hoyeon, Conor Sherry, and Randall Park for W Magazine — Baker turns a promotional opportunity into a reason to unleash his inner anarchy. While models don the Khaite lineup (and Baker makes sure to actually frame these garments appropriately, and with style), these women tear up the city with extreme chaos, adding a level of badness to a fashion line that can only make these outfits feel even cooler to don. The Baker-veteran actor, Karren Karagulian (who has appeared in almost every single Baker release to date), even has a cameo here. This could have been an all-business affair, but it would be atypical of Baker if he didn’t inject his quirks and oddball calamity into this commercial-esque short.
8. Snowbird
The only short film that Baker made that possesses some form of an actual narrative (and not a more vague idea of themes), it may surprise you that Snowbird is also a fashion-based promotional film (this time for Kenzo’s fall 2016 lineup; this actually predates the Khaite short). As star Abbey Lee sports some Kenzo wear and strolls across a barren desert community with a homemade cake she wishes to share with local residents, we not only get Kenzo’s intention (to celebrate their then-upcoming outfits), but we get a tale of humility and humble adoration. If you feel like Baker indulges in anxiety and tragedy too often, this twelve minute short possesses some of the most heartwarming moments in Baker’s filmography; of course, tenderness aside, there’s still a pinch of sadness attached to spending time with those who live in this community (think Chloé Zhao’s Nomadland, but Baker style). Outside of feeling just a little too short, I actually recommend Snowbird to all who are interested; yes, even though it’s technically a lengthier commercial for fashion.
7. Prince of Broadway
Even though I’ve ranked it last when it comes to Baker’s prime period of filmmaking (essentially any feature film after Four Letter Words is worth watching), Prince of Broadway is quite a strong feature. The handicam-esque cinematography (shot by Baker himself) makes us feel like we are intruding upon person affairs (in this case, a New York City hustler who has been informed that he has a child that he never knew about). I feel like Baker’s affinity for verbal cacophony would be refined as he continued to make films, but his fascination with seeing pent-up human beings setting each other off really began with this film: a study of what it looks like to bring people on the brink of collapse over the edge mentally. Despite the protagonist selling knock-off brands to get by, Prince of Broadway — especially with its low-budget nature — feels as honest as such a film can get, as if it were a video diary of a difficult life that is only about to get tougher.
6. Starlet
I feel like Starlet wasn’t the absolute breakthrough of Baker’s career (more on that shortly), but, rather, it was the lead up to said moment. It was noticed by numerous indie circuit festivals and publications for its unabashed vulnerability and rawness; from some of Baker’s most compassionate sequences to date (mainly featuring adult film rising star Jane/Tess, and her far-older new friend, the lonely Sadie) to the most graphic (unsimulated sex scenes featuring body doubles). I think that when it is at its best, Starlet contains some of Baker’s best writing, as we get to know two women at different stages of life fighting for warmth. In that same breath, it is the rare narrative flimsiness that has me ranking Starlet below some other titles; otherwise, I’d argue that Starlet is a fantastic example of American indie filmmaking that has to be seen by fans of the scene.
5. Red Rocket
One of Baker’s biggest releases to date, I feel like Red Rocket — while overall a great film — is kind of the best and worst of Baker’s tendencies, hence why I have ranked it below four other titles (it is a bit over long, and some plot threads feel hastily resolved). Red Rocket takes its time to get going, and it can stall the film just a little bit in its initial stages, as we follow retired pornstar Mikey Saber (played in a career re-defining performance by Simon Rex) and his return to Texas City to try and get back on his feet. We learn that he is a user and opportunist who will do whatever he can to selfishly help himself; his fixation on his dubious AVN awards is an example of how he skews situations for himself (but, at the same time, being poor and struggling to survive can turn people into masters of deception in order to keep going). Red Rocket is at its best in its explosive third act: one where all of Saber’s exploits and bad karma come back to smother him, forcing him to confront the fact that he is a leech and may always be a leech. Red Rocket concludes with an ambiguous question: will Saber use this point of his life to finally change? After all that we have seen, Baker allows us to decide Saber’s fate and character.
4. Take Out
Baker co-directed and co-wrote Take Out with Taiwanese-American filmmaker Shih-Ching Tsou, who has helped produce and even star in numerous of Baker’s films since (including her role as doughnut shop owner Ms. Phan in Red Rocket). Together, they make a film that honestly feels like a modern day Vittorio De Sica feature. We follow a New York City deliveryman in twenty four hours as he battles to make up enough money to pay off the debt owed to the smugglers that brought him into the United States illegally. As Baker — who worked as a DOP on this film — shoots Take Out as if it were a cinéma verité documentary, the lines between reality and narrative are so blurred that you may find yourself forgetting that this is a character study and not an actual person having the hardest day of their life. In typical Baker fashion, Take Out stacks all of the cards against its protagonist. Uncharacteristically, however (and this may be thanks to Tsou), I’d argue that Take Out is Baker’s most hopeful film, especially in regards to its conclusion which felt like prayers have been answered; it’s a revelation that will bring a tear to your eye.
3. Tangerine
Baker’s big breakout film is Tangerine: a film that is as indie as indie cinema gets. We travel to the streets of Hollywood to follow two Black, transgender sex workers on a mission: to track down one of their boyfriends — a pimp who is now released from jail — and confront him and his adulterous ways. Shot entirely on iPhones, Tangerine is indicative of chronically-online culture, as if we are swiping through social media feeds and trying to learn more about this messy situation. Tangerine was a spectacle when it was released back in 2015 because many viewers wanted to see what all of the trashy fuss was about; I think Baker garnered many fans on the spot because of how many watchers weren’t prepared for how beautiful and artistic this film could get. In fact, this almost feels like Tangerine’s entire purpose: to lure in those attracted to gossip and drama, and have them stay for the humanization of characters that could have easily been left to fester and wallow. Tangerine shows how much aspiring filmmakers can achieve with so little; it is equal parts revelatory and inspirational.
2. The Florida Project
If Tangerine put Baker on the map, then The Florida Project put him in the stratosphere. I am highly familiar with the Orlando area, having been someone who has visited and traveled across Florida quite a few times in my life. To know that someone made a film about the Magic Castle Inn in Kissimmee, Florida (right near Walt Disney World) boggled my mind; I had seen Tangerine already, and knew that only a director like Baker could have done this story justice (I’ve heard rumblings about Baker eventually tackling an East Hastings, Vancouver film, and my sentiments are the same for this potential film). As we join a struggling family — a single mother and her six-year-old daughter — at this rundown motel-project, we get a slice of what this paradoxical life is like; how could people be going through such hell in an area known for making dreams come true and serving as the ultimate vacation for so many privileged civilians? Willem Dafoe — easily the biggest name to ever work with Baker at this point — serves as the manager of the Magic Castle left with the impossible task of a moral dilemma: does he keep this family, or get rid of them for a multitude of offenses? Baker shooting the final scene guerilla-style (via an iPhone, just like Tangerine) is a career highlight: a snapshot of a synthetic “happy ending” in a place that would forbid such a sequence from being shot in the proper way. The Florida Project made Baker a household name in contemporary cinema, and he fortunately has only gotten bigger since.
1. Anora
If The Florida Project sent Braker into the stratosphere, then Anora took the director to a whole new universe: one where little indie directors could take on billion-dollar-franchise Goliaths and somehow win. The previous entries of this list showed what he could achieve with very little money; Anora was proof of how far he could go with even just a six-million-dollar budget. His ideas didn’t get lazier: they only got stronger. This fable about a stripper — Ani (played by Mikey Madison in an Oscar-winning role) — and her life in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn winds up becoming a fairy tale romance between her and a frequent client, Vanya (the immature, lazy, wealthy son of a Russian oligarch); they get married, and Baker allows Anora to take its time to properly build these characters and their relationship.
However, paradise comes crashing down when Vanya’s family finds out about this marriage, and Anora becomes a frantic string of bedlam. Anora is Baker at his very best: a depicter of human distress, a filmmaker who can toy with expectation and represent imperfect characters, and a traditional indie filmmaker making unorthodox choices. This rise-and-fall tragicomedy resonated with audiences worldwide, resulting in a huge box office return, and the film winning both the Palme d’Or at Cannes and Best Picture at the Academy Awards (Baker would win three other Oscars for this film as producer, director, screenwriter, and editor, setting a new record for winning the most Oscars for one film and tying Walt Disney [with extreme irony] for most Oscars at any ceremony). There’s a clear reason why this film has had such success: Anora is easily Sean Baker’s best film, even amidst his other triumphs.
Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.