‘Emily the Criminal‘ (2022) is one of the most exciting feature films directorial debuts that I’ve seen in the recent years. As John Patton Ford also wrote the screenplay, my guess is that we’re dealing with a talented filmmaker who has a lot to say and enough time ahead of him, even if this film was made after he crossed the 40-year-old barrier. It’s a seemingly simple story about a modern-day young woman’s slide into crime, which both manages to say a lot about herself and about the world she lives in.
Emily is a graduate of an art school for which she has fallen head over heels in debt. A minor crime left her with a criminal record that makes it difficult for her to find suitable jobs that will allow her to pay the installments. When she can no longer cope financially, she agrees to take part in a credit card fraud scheme. She meets Youcef and becomes more than his accomplice in crime. But with the money comes the risks of getting deeper and deeper into the world of crime. Surprisingly, Emily will find in herself the resources to survive and even succeed in the world of crime, where violence cannot be for a long time avoided.
The screenplay is not perfect, especially towards the end, but John Patton Ford managed to realistically describe the social environment and economic pressure in which his characters live. Present-day Los Angeles is the perfect setting for this personal and crime drama. The quality of the film, however, is primarily given by the superb acting performance of Aubrey Plaza, in the role of the anti-heroine turned unlikely criminal. I had noticed her in a previous film where she stood up brilliantly to Michael Caine. Here she has Theo Rossi as her partner, and although he is also an actor with many qualities and charisma, he seems to be in her shadow here. Looking forward to the next John Patton Ford and Aubrey Plaza movies.