EMILIA PÉREZ – A Review by Cynthia Flores
This new musical film from French director and co-writer Jacques Audiard is a project that elevates film into art. This does not mean it is an intellectual arthouse kind of film that few would appreciate. Far from it, Emilia Pérez slams gears between telenovela drama and action film. All while shining a light on the corruption in Mexico and the cost to its people specifically, the thousands that have gone missing. The fact that it uses the desire of a drug lord to shed more than just his brutal life is genius. This intriguing film is a genre-defying fusion of greed, brutality, transformation, and love. It is not what you might expect from a regular musical.
The movie is set in modern-day Mexico. It tells the story of four women all looking for happiness in this messy world. The main character of the film is named Manitas Del Monte at the beginning of the story (Karla Sofia Gascón), a frighteningly lethal cartel leader. He enlists the help of Rita (Zoe Saldaña), a lower lever but clever lawyer stuck in a crappy job making her boss look good. For the right price, Rita will help him fake his death and get the procedures needed to become Emilia. Who can finally live authentically as a woman free of the cartel business. Manitas knows the cost as he chooses to leave behind his wife Jessi (Selena Gomez) and their two children Angel (Gaël Murguia-Fur) and Diego (Trso Pietriga).
All is well until a few years later, Emilia bumps into a now glamorous Rita in London, and he asks her to help him see his children again. Even in this new persona, Emilia has a deadly way of making people see her way in an argument. Once Rita helps Emilia rejoin her family as Aunt Emilia, Manitas’ aunt, they find a way to do good with the millions they have. They are both moved by the plight of the families that have lost thousands of family members to the cartels. The disappeared. They build a foundation that lets gang members tell where the bodies are buried, and through DNA, the families are reunited with their dead. Giving them closure and peace.
In doing this, Rita becomes a real friend to Emilia and a go-between with Jessi, who while living at Emilias’ home, starts up again with an old lover named Gustavo (Édgar Ramírez). This new relationship leads to a disastrous ending.
The haunting score and synth-heavy songs for Emilia Pérez are by singer-songwriter Camille and composer Clément Ducol. They worked together to create 16 original songs for the film. There are moments in the movie when the words are being sung so low and mournfully that you have to strain to hear them. Then times when they are shouted with passion and splashed across the screen to the choreography of Belgian Damien Jalet. Most of it is in Spanish, with some English thrown in. You will be haunted by a few of the songs long after the credits have rolled.
Emilia Pérez has gotten critical acclaim ever since it premiered at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Where it won the Jury Prize and the Best Actress Award split between Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofia Gascón, Selena Gomez, and Adriana Paz. It’s not often that a whole female lead cast of a film gets to share a Best Actress.
There have been other musicals about transgender leads, such as the Broadway hit Hedwig and the Angry Inch. I like the way Emilia Pérez chooses to show the thread of transformation with all the women in the film not just Emilia. And its hope for transformation on a larger scale for the country of Mexico itself. Making it a truly unique film to enjoy.
Emilia Pérez is a must-see film this season. It has started my Top Ten Best list for 2024. I can see it not only being nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Film, Best Director, Best Actress but also winning Best Supporting Actress for Selena Gomez. Her portrait of Jessi is surprising and heartbreaking.
I give Emilia Pérez 5 stars. It’s a remarkable film that will leave you sitting in the dark thinking deep thoughts and hearing the echoes of the haunting songs from the film. Catch it in a theater and enjoy the spectacle that is Emilia Pérez on the big screen.
Directed by: Jacques Audiard
Written by: Jacques Audiard, Thomas Bidegain, Nicolas Livecchi
Rated: R
Selig Rating: 5 Stars
Running Time: 2 hr 12 min
Drama / Musical
Release: In theaters November 1st and on Netflix November 13th
Starring: Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón, Selena Gomez, Adriana Paz, and Edgar Ramirez
The Selig Rating Scale:
5 Stars – Excellent movie/show, well worth the time and price.
4 Stars – Good movie/show
3 Stars – OK movie/show
2 Stars – Well, there was nothing else…
1 Star – Total waste of time.
