Emilia Pérez It is a film that defies classification. It is, at the same time, a drug trafficking saga, a melodrama and a pop opera that addresses themes of identity, redemption and evolution. It’s also wrapped in some over-the-top musical theatrics, with the film opening with Zoe Saldaña’s underappreciated lawyer Rita singing a song about a murder case on the neon-lit streets of Mexico. From there it gets even bolder.
Emilia Pérez It’s unlike anything you’ve ever seen, both because of the audacious story at its center and because of Jacques Audiard’s direction, which mixes high theatricality and experimental technique. It’s a miracle that a film like this exists. Anchored by three deeply moving performances, Emilia Pérez it works despite the fact that it shouldn’t, creating a poignant, gripping drama that teeters between chaos and control.
Emilia Pérez is an electrifying experience
I’ve never seen anything like it
From the first musical number, Emilia Pérez reveals itself as something totally original. The film finds strength in these moments, like when Rita sings about her unsatisfying job or when Karla Sofía Gascón sings wistfully about her character’s gender-affirming surgery as Juan “Manitas” Del Monte.
Briefly, Emilia Pérez is about Manitas, a powerful drug dealer who wants to transform into a woman and live his life as it should be lived. Counting on Rita’s help, Manitas ends up achieving this goal, leaving behind his wife Jessi (Selena Gomez, as you’ve never seen her before) and two children out of fear for their safety.
Many threads are left unexplored in favor of spectacle, but that spectacle is a feature, not a bug, and these unexplored threads do not negate the film’s power.
A few years have passed since her transition, when Emilia returns to reclaim her old life, including her ex-wife and children, who she hid in Switzerland before her transition. She reconnects with Rita and begins working to repent of the sins of her former life. There are tens of thousands of people missing in Mexico and Emilia hopes to provide closure for their families.
It’s a story of redemption, of course, but the film also asks whether Emilia can truly be absolved for what she did and whether she has truly changed. The answer is complicated. But Emilia Pérez It’s a complicated film, which perhaps touches on too many themes. Many threads are left unexplored in favor of spectacle, but that spectacle is a feature, not a bug, and these unexplored threads do not negate the film’s power.
Once Emilia returns to Mexico, the film opts for a morality tale about the past and whether it is possible to atone for horrible crimes. Revealing the film’s answer would be a spoiler, but the sins of the past appear in many ways. Emilia Pérez she is more concerned with her life than with the thorny questions it poses.
Karla Sofía Gascón gives an impressive performance as the title character
Supported by Selena Gomez, Zoe Saldaña and Adriana Paz
The entire cast of Emilia Pérez, including supporting actors Edgar Ramirez (always a delight) and Adriana Paz (delicate but formidable as Epifanía) hold the film together, but it is Gascón who lights up the screen. Tasked with reconciling all of the film’s important themes, the actress delivers a complex, layered performance as the title character.
Each relationship – especially between the four main women – is explored with nuance. Gascón is slyly mischievous with Jessi, tender and loving with Epifanía, and resolute but confident with Rita. Although there are several love stories in Emilia Pérezthe most fascinating is the one between Rita and Emília.
It’s a testament to Saldaña and Gascón’s power that a quiet conversation in the middle of a restaurant — some of it sung, lights dramatically dimmed so that only the pair is highlighted as others talk around them — is as compelling and moving as it is. . There are many such stylistic flourishes in Emilia Pérezmaking the film vibrant and kinetic. It’s not a perfect film, but Emilia Pérez is endlessly captivating, an exercise in genre, tone and pure fearlessness.
It was picked up by Netflix after its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, but if you can see it in a theater, it’s an absolute must. Again, it’s rare that a film like Emilia Pérez appears and deserves to be seen on the biggest screen possible so you can feel the energy emanating from the screen, see the song and dance numbers in all their glory, and experience a once-in-a-lifetime experience. filming the way it was meant to be experienced.
Emilia Pérez premiered at the Cannes Film Festival before screening at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. The film is in theaters now and will be available to stream on Netflix on November 13th. It is 132 minutes long and rated R for language, some violent content and sexual material.
Emilia Perez is a drama that follows the life of Emilia Perez, a determined and ambitious person who strives to stand out in a competitive environment. The story explores her journey as she faces the challenges and obstacles that come her way, while also discovering the complexities of her own identity.
- Emilia Pérez’s combination of genres provides an unforgettable experience.
- Zoe Saldaña, Selena Gomez and Adriana Paz give impressive performances, but Karla Sofía Gascón is the heart of the film.
- Emilia Pérez seems like a rare spectacle on the big screen that defies categorization.
- Some of the film’s themes are not fully explored.