EMILIA PÉREZ - Review | Cannes Film Festival 2024

Jacques Audiard’s latest film is the defining Spanish musical whose creative, rapturous, and meaningful presentation truly confirms the director’s adaptability of working in all genres and languages. Carried by a set of profound characters from multi-layered acting, especially Karla Sofia Gascón and Zoe Saldaña, who fully sell the musical and dramatic aspects of the expansive but powerful story of seeking redemption and battling corruption. It also manages to blend the best of several genres without feeling messy. This results in an engaging and peculiar experience with memorable music while making profound statements on contemporary social status in Mexico despite some melodrama.

Still Courtesy – Pathé

Rita (portrayed by Zoe Saldaña) is a strong-minded lawyer living in Mexico City who desires proper compensation for her services despite the impactful reputation she's developed. She ends up being given this chance when the boss of a notorious drug cartel named Juan "Manitas" del Monte (portrayed by Karla Sofía Gascón) needs her negotiation skills in exchange for a high payment. This is to grant Manitas the proper resources to get a sex change and achieve his dream of transitioning as a woman without his wife, Jessi (portrayed by Selena Gomez), noticing. From there, the two individuals agree to help one another in a musical epic that spans multiple years.

This is certainly one of the last projects that a filmmaker like Jacques Audiard would be perceived to take despite his exceptional talent and versatility. However, making a darkly comedic cartel-centered original musical entirely in Spanish which happens to mainly be a French production is something that wouldn't typically cross one's mind when looking at his filmography. Even with his previous film, Les Olympiades (2021), which certainly leaned more into a comedic route compared to anything that Audiard had made before. What he and his team were able to accomplish with Emilia Pérez (2024) will not only fully convince viewers that Audaird is truly capable of working in any genre and language. But his rapturous energy, the purposeful and electrifying music, and the profound story and set of characters provide a consistent dazzling and twisted experience with a high desire of

reliving it.

Given the abnormal take on this type of story following the journey of a vicious cartel boss who desires to be reborn as a woman and make amends for his previous troubles. Having an equally unusual presentation would be the most appropriate way to complement this approach to the story. Thus, the film being presented as an energetic musical not only fits this intent featuring precise dance choreography, dynamic and free-flowing camera movements, and the participation of many background singers and dancers when necessary. It also makes Emilia Pérez (2024) far more unique and special considering that most of its songs are in Spanish that contain catchy melodies, progress the story, and remain authentically Mexican. For a film that was mainly assembled by a crew entirely based in France, including the two composers/songwriters: Clément Ducol and Camille. Effort and dedication are certainly noticeable for accuratley capturing the feeling of contemporary Mexico and its conflicts through the music and its colorful but grimy look.

At the same time, despite the main performers of the film playing Mexicans who may speak fluent Spanish, but their background originates from elsewhere. This never ended up being distracting with Audiard making sure that each actor perfectly fits the roles they're given while bringing out the best performances from their careers. As the film progresses, it's clear that Zoe Saldaña as Rita dominates the audience's attention during the first half, and Karla Sofia Gascón eventually as Emilia Pérez dominates the other half. Still, the co-leading actresses provide the singing/dancing skills necessary and the engrossing performances to their broken but dynamic characters that carry the story on their shoulders.

It's incredibly refreshing to see Zoe Saldaña be given a role like this where she gets to showcase her musical and Spanish-speaking talents without any VFX/makeup hiding her appearance. Meanwhile, Karla Sofía Gascón in her breakout role provides the emotional heart of the film and manages to believably differentiate her two roles while providing subtle nuances that still show that they're the same person. Even Selena Gomez showcases her most impressive dramatic work to date as the mother/wife who deals with the dramatic irony of her husband's situation. Based on its execution, it's a film that aims to be big and extravagant with its themes of family dilemma, Mexico's social status, and taking advantage of new opportunities. Thus, it's intentionally melodramatic for how they're delivered despite some major moments that are harder to take seriously with this presentation. There's also points where the film relies on using visual effects for more impractical moments that don't compare as well to the rest of the film's visual aesthetic.

Since Emilia Pérez (2024) goes all the way to deliver the intended grand emotions, audiences who're looking for something more restrained might struggle more to connect with it and take it fully seriously. However, since this style definitely seems intended based on its wild sequence of events and musical presentation, which also pays homage to classic Mexican soap operas. Audiard's highly entertaining and fascinating film will satisfy and resonate with those who are open to the purposeful approach he took with it. Especially with its surprising but deserving payoffs that end on a sad but uplifting note; making viewers wish that more corrupt/violent leaders would decide to use their power to help all kinds of people and leave a positive impact on society. Thus, Emilia Perez (2024) was a creative risk worth taking that will strongly hold up with some of the greatest musicals ever made.

Verdict

9/10

Still Courtesy – Pathé