Controversies aside, Audiard once again tackles admirably something outside of his comfort zone as his unorthodox musical thriller exudes the necessary vitality it needs to tell the story about a Mexican cartel boss who desires to transition into a woman and lead a new life. 

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Probably the most maligned film in the recently concluded awards circuit of 2024, Emilia Perez comes with a host of controversies, including its unsavoury depiction of victims of Mexican cartels, director Jacques Audiard’s prejudice-laden comments about Spanish as a language “of poor people”, and most concerningly, trans actor Karla Sofia Gascon’s racist comments on X that were dug out by a journalist. 

All these made me want to see the film even more.  Guess what, it is a fantastic film.  Controversial, yes.  Fantastic, also yes. 

Musicals aren’t quite my thing, though I enjoy a La La Land (2016) or West Side Story (2021) once in a while.  I was hooked on Emilia Perez because it feels so refreshing and full of vitality, plus there is so much to be impressed by its film language, be it cinematography or editing. 

Gascon plays Manitas, a feared cartel boss who wants to secretly transition into a woman and lead a new life, away from family commitments and the violence of organised crime.  Zoe Saldana, in arguably her career-best performance, is the out-of-luck lawyer who strikes gold as Manitas’ confidante. 

None of the songs was particularly memorable though, but they all jive with the narrative in thematic and sonic ways. 

“I’ve always been two. My real self and the beast that has followed me like a shadow.”

It may be sad to see Audiard’s reputation take some hitting with the rather vocal anti-Emilia Perez contingent, but he remains one of Europe’s most competent auteurs working today. 

Never afraid to tackle something outside his comfort zone (see 2015’s Dheepan or 2018’s The Sisters Brothers), Emilia Perez is perhaps the natural culmination of his desire to engage and subvert genre and cultural tropes. 

As an unorthodox musical thriller, Audiard’s somewhat misunderstood work forces us to confront what might be uncomfortable when deception and gaslighting are part of a person’s repertoire for coping with life’s challenges. 

We sometimes find ourselves going back to old habits, refusing to let go of our old selves, even as we find new paths of being.  Give it a shot… there is a reason it has received so many nominations all over the world since its Cannes premiere. 

Grade: A-

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