WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for Emilia Pérez.
The end of Netflix’s crime comedy musical Emilia Pérez finds the titular protagonist and the mother of her children, Jessi, at the end of the road. Directed by French filmmaker Jacques Audiard (Rust and Bone, The Sisters Brothers), the genre-bending film offers innovative musical numbers and choreography infused with a harrowing story about unfulfilled desires and regrets. The film is a loose adaptation of the 2018 novel Écoute by Boris Razon and is France’s official entry for Best International Film at the upcoming 97th Academy Awards, which will be held on March 2, 2025.
The combined talents of Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón and Selena Gomez led the cast of Emilia Pérez. Emilia Pérez won the Jury Prize and the Best Actress Ensemble Award at the 2024 Cannes Film Festivalwhere it had its world premiere in May. Emilia Pérez The soundtrack is one of the film’s essential highlights, as well as the heart and soul of the tragic narrative. Although Emilia Pérez Set in multiple locations, the film was shot primarily in studios in Paris, France. Although Emilia demonstrated immense growth in her new life, her need for control and her inability to separate her happiness from her family led to her downfall.
Why do Emilia, Jessi and Gustavo die at the end of Emilia Pérez
Jessi takes a final, fatal stand to protect Emilia
Emilia found out the hard way not to mess with Jessi and her lifestyle, which was based on access to the vast money Mantias had left her and her children. The second Emilia invited Jessi and her kids to live in her mansion in Mexico, Jessi knew there were ties in the form of designer handcuffsas she bitterly expresses in the song “Bienvenida”. Jessi manages to hide her anger at Emília’s financial control until she reveals that she plans to marry Gustavo and live with him elsewhere with their children, which enrages Emília so much that she almost blows her cover.
Gustavo isn’t much of a character in Emila Pérez but he represents the person who will cut off Emília’s direct access to her children. Emília orders her bodyguard to beat Gustavo after physically threatening Jessi in bed. This leads Jessi to run away with the kids at the next possible chance and the two become fierce rivals. Jessi even allows Gustavo’s associates to cut off three of Emília’s fingers. As soon as Emilia reveals her true identity to Jessi, she immediately goes into shock and regrets. She makes one last attempt to protect Emilia while she is locked in the trunk.. Unfortunately, Jessi’s rash aggression forces Gustavo to fall off a cliff, resulting in the three of them dying in the burning car.
Why Emilia couldn’t live without her children
Emilia’s life would have been incomplete without them
Emilia had the best of both worlds while Jessi and her children lived with her in Mexico. As she sings the song “El Amor”, she is deeply conflicted about only being able to be half her true self, with Mantias essentially hiding in plain sight. Although Emília had to hide her paternal love for her children, being able to see them every day was the next best option. It’s unclear how long Emilia believed this dynamic would last, but she was completely taken by surprise by Jessi’s announcement that she would be taking the children to live with Gustavo. Emilia ostensibly assumed that the children would live with her throughout their childhood.
What happens to Emília and Rita’s children
Rita can finally be a mother like she always wanted
Rita expresses in the song “Todo y Nada” at the beginning of the film that she would like to have children and find a father, but feels she doesn’t have time for that. The deaths of Emilia and Jessi provide Rita with the opportunity to be a mother as she has wanted to be for so long. While Rita obviously wasn’t rooting for this outcome, it’s clear that Emilia and Jessi’s children will be in good hands with her. They’ll probably stay at Emilia’s mansion in Mexico or I could go back to Switzerland, where the kids love skiing. Rita could also take them to London, where she started a new life after helping Manitas. However, due to their Mexican heritage, they will likely remain where they are.
Why Emilia didn’t tell Jessi the truth sooner
Emilia kept the truth until it was too late
Emilia has grown a lot as a person since her transition, especially as a positive member of the community who seeks to right the wrongs of her past. It’s disappointing that it never crossed your mind to approach Jessi with an open heart and ask for your compassion for your transition. This probably would have been a better strategy to maintain access to her children, rather than making Jessi an archenemy and trying to control the situation with brute force. Tragically, it shows a total regression of Emília’s moral development, almost erasing all the steps she took to heal and forgive herself for a lifetime of crime and violence. In the end, Emília’s pride suffocated all her positive changes.
Emília will be remembered as a saintly figure
For the community in general, however, Emília exists as an exemplary figure. Many people sang to her in the streets after her death, honoring her as a saint for the work she did with her foundation for missing persons, La Lucecita. There is a great irony in the community that mourns and celebrates Emília’s life when they really only know half the picture. Manitas was a dangerous and feared kingpin, responsible for many of these missing people.
The only person who knew this was Rita, which makes it somewhat surprising that Emilia never tried to silence Rita permanently after reconnecting with her in London. Emilia undoubtedly deserved recognition for the changes she has made in recent years, both for herself and her community. However, those people probably wouldn’t worship his legacy so passionately if they only knew the truth.
The true meaning of Emilia Pérez’s ending
Despite becoming herself, Emilia was still separated from everything and everyone
The end of Emilia Pérez challenges the viewer to consider Emilia’s moral worth in contrast to Manitas’s evils. It evokes questions like “Was Emília redeemed?” and “Does she deserve such an emotional and passionate farewell?“. It’s one thing to make a positive impact on the community, but it’s completely different considering the life of crime and violence it tries to cover up. Even when Emilia started La Lucecita, there was a sense that it was more self-fulfilling than selflessas she intended to absolve herself of her past life. Comparing Emília to a saint would be an insult to true community leaders who did not need to bury a life of crime before making a difference in society.
Emilia’s impact on her community in Emilia Pérez it’s a symbol of the impact she’s silently making as a trans woman. As Rita explains to Dr. Wasserman in the song “Lady,” “changing the soul changes society”, which is effectively what Emilia did for the missing persons issue. Emilia does not defend her most immediate cause, trans equalityand instead remains silent about her transition and true identity, as she had to go into hiding as the criminal Manitas and “disgrace” her family name. Openly advocating for trans rights and equality would risk blowing her cover, so finding another cause to become the face of was her way of quietly honoring her truest community in Emilia Pérez.