Jacques Audiard has never disappointed me before. Many of his films have as their main theme (or one of the main themes) the search for identity and changes of identity. Many of the memorable characters in his films search for their identities or hide under false identities or have at the end of the story in the film a different identity than the one we had known them under earlier. This is also the case with ‘Emilia Pérez‘ (2024), one of the films that made a sensation and also collected awards at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. It is an interesting and original combination of a film about the Mexican mafia and social and political criticism, of soap opera and musical. The story takes place most of the time in Mexico, but the filming took place in France. The cast is international and the film is spoken and sung in Spanish, although the director is not fluent in the language. ‘Emilia Pérez‘ is a film that divided the opinions of critics and also divides the opinions of the audiences to extremes. I am one of those who liked this movie a lot.
The film begins as a narco-thriller, continues as a sci-fi musical, moves into melodrama with social overtones and ends as a narco-thriller, coming full circle. Along the way, we will have the opportunity to follow the transformation of two main characters: an insecure lawyer who cannot make her way in a world dominated by men, and a gangster who wants to lose his trace and identity. Both characters want to transform into something else entirely. The transformations are radical and there is no going back.
The main criticism leveled at the film is perhaps justified. Apparently it’s about Mexico, with the violence of a society based on drug trafficking and kidnapping, but the rendering seems to be based on stereotypes about Mexico rather than reality. There are plenty of other films, including those by Mexican filmmakers, that present a much more humane, more complex, more nuanced picture. The director’s attention is focused on the relationships between four women who love and hate, suffer and try to realize themselves in a world that oppresses them. We are witnessing a family drama that does not shy away from melodrama, but we are definitely in the land of soap operas. Of the four characters and performers who received an interesting collective award for female performance at Cannes, that of the lawyer Rita played by Zoe Saldana and that of Karla Sofía Gascón as the gangster Manitas del Monte turned Emilia Pérez I think stand out. Characters from Almodovar’s films immediately come to mind, but here I think both the story and the character are much more complex. Can gender transformation also lead to a complete personality transformation? It is the central question related to the heroine of the film, and I think the answer will be given by each of the viewers. The artistic vehicle of this question is an emotional captivating story, told in an original and engaging style. “Emilia Pérez” is the second film in a few months that proves that the musical genre is alive. The other is ‘Joker 2’. Both movies have their fans and their critics. Proof of vitality.