All About Anna (2005)

All About Anna is rare in that it treats explicit eroticism not as a gimmick, but as a lens for character—an unusually story-forward, visually polished romantic dramedy about a woman trying to keep love at arm’s length while life keeps tapping her on the shoulder. Jessica Nilsson gives the film a sleek, lived-in Copenhagen-to-Paris vibe, with music and costume-world details that make the emotions feel textured rather than melodramatic, and Gry Bay anchors it with a performance that’s more thoughtful than the premise might suggest. It’s playful and grown-up, sometimes tender, sometimes wry, and it keeps its focus on the push-pull between freedom and intimacy instead of cheap shock. Fair warning: the sex is very explicit (including real-sex scenes), so it’s not for every viewer—but if you’re open to that, you may be surprised by how crafted, entertaining, and genuinely romantic it can be.

All About Anna is aiming for a frank, modern romance-drama about a woman trying to keep love casual while her past keeps yanking her back into feelings, and it doesn’t pretend to be coy about sex. The problem is that the storytelling often feels thin and a bit soap-operatic, with characters making convenient choices to push the plot along rather than earning the emotional turns. A lot of the runtime leans on explicit sex as “honesty,” which will either read as refreshing or as a substitute for deeper chemistry and dialogue, depending on your tolerance for that. If you want a nuanced, sharply written romantic comedy, you may find this shallow; if you’re fine with a breezy, erotic relationship tangle and don’t mind some rough edges, it has a candid, unfiltered vibe that might work for you.