Emilia Pérez Review 2024 | Audiard New Movie

“Emilia Pérez” is the representative of French cinema in the 77th edition of the Oscars, which addresses gender identity. Stay tuned with Cinelysium for a critique.

Jacques Audiard is one of the established and well-known figures of the Cannes Film Festival. He found his way to Cannes with his first film, “See How They Fall,” and then won the Golden Palm with his film “Dheepan.” After that, he shone with films like “A Prophet,” “Sisters Brothers,” and “Rust and Bone.” What happens in the world of Audiard that makes works like Emilia Pérez, A Prophet, Dheepan, etc., shine at a festival like Cannes, is the attention to narratives and indigenous characteristics.

The stories, characters, and events of all these films are somehow related to specific coordinates, and their heroes come from different countries. They come from chaotic and tumultuous worlds rooted in their places of origin. “Emilia Pérez” was one of the best films at the Cannes Film Festival, drawing much attention from critics. It is a highly festival-friendly and narrates a vibrant story that takes place in Mexico. Apart from the performances of Karla Gascón (who appears in both roles of Manitas and Emilia), Zoe Saldana and Selena Gomez also received a lot of attention from critics. This film is one of the most anticipated films of 2024.

Please note that the upcoming text spoils the story.

“Emilia Pérez” is a daring combination of different genres and ideas. Audiard, with his inherent talent, has created a multi-layered world that could have led to the downfall of the film, but despite the challenges, he has presented a work that is acceptable and captivating. This film is visually, formally, and thematically multi-dimensional, immersing the audience in a specific world.

The film begins with a courtroom drama, where Rita Mora, a neglected lawyer, is forced to collaborate with her boss to rescue a criminal from prison. This starting point serves as an introduction to a larger world. After winning the court case, a strange call to Rita completely changes the course of the film.

Manitas Delmonte, one of the most dangerous smugglers in Mexico, kidnaps Rita for an unusual negotiation. Rita accepts to be his lawyer in exchange for a large sum of money, not for a simple task, but to facilitate the process of Manitas’ gender reassignment. With this daring and challenging idea, Audiard steers the film toward a deep drama and festival-friendly direction. Manitas wants to become what he has always wished for.

In “Emelia Perez,” war and violence are transformed into feminine energy; which proves a big challenge for Audiard. Manitas’ gender change is a complex idea that requires a compelling world. If Manitas were an ordinary man, the story wouldn’t be as captivating, but he is a terrifying figure that everyone fears. Rita accepts his case and designs plans for his gender change. In the midst of this, suspense, as a dramatic element, turns the film into a powerful crime story.

The audience is worried about Rita and fears that Manitas’ gender reassignment may lead to a disaster. The combination of the crime genre with the theme of gender change showcases the confrontation of two contrasting worlds. Audiard delves deep into identity and psychological issues through this conflict.

Manitas undergoes surgery and the film enters its second act. His looks from under the bandages and his tears are a metaphor for a rebirth. Amidst pain and tears, Emilia is born, and the story reaches new conflicts. Now living as Emilia, Manitas leads a new life, a new identity that the filmmaker seeks to explore.

In his masculine identity, Manitas had a terrifying face, but now as Emilia, he is in the process of purification and is searching for Mexico’s missing persons. Even after Jessie’s betrayal, he shows no reaction and allows his gender change to proceed smoothly. This approach could have weakened the dramatic relationships in the film, as potential conflicts with Jessie could have added to the story’s appeal.

Audiard has shown little interest in the physical and emotional transformation of Manitas into Emilia. For him, it does not matter how this change happened; his main focus is on seeing the world through the eyes of women. In his masculine identity, Manitas is a terrifying monster living in the desert, but as Emilia, in his feminine identity, searches for the missing and creates a calmer world. With this change, Audiard sees the salvation of the world in the salvation of women. With the birth of Emilia, the world of the film takes on new colors, and she settles in a home full of life, far from her ugly and harsh past.

The world of “Emilia Perez” is a world of women. Four women in this film are seeking their destinies. Jessie, played by Selena Gomez, symbolizes a woman in search of love with a little will. She easily submits to Manitas and even returns to his home after his gender change. On the other hand, Rita, played by Zoe Saldana, is an independent and ambitious woman who confronts Manitas without fear. Jessie suppresses her feelings due to fear of Manitas, while Rita holds control of her own life.

Epifanía, the last woman added to the story, injects a fresh yet heavy idea into the film. Having escaped from the masculine world and being happy about her husband’s death, she seeks refuge with Emilia and enters into a relationship with her. Her entry brings a shock to the film and reveals that it is designed solely for festivals. With the heavy theme of gender change, the film does not have the capacity for this additional idea. Epifanía, without proper background, appears as an unfit piece in the story.

From the very beginning, the musical aspect of the film captures the audience’s attention. The combination of musical, melodrama, crime, and courtroom drama genres posed a great challenge for Audiard. Without the musical element, the film could have turned into an intriguing trailer, but the musical nature of tense scenes, like the reunion of Manitas and Rita, diminishes the intensity of suspense. For a film with heavy layers like “Emelia Perez,” choosing the musical genre is not particularly suitable because it distracts the audience’s focus from her journey of heroism toward the songs.

As previously mentioned, “Emelia Perez” is a film with heavy and cluttered ideas. It is a combination of different genres that strike a blow to the focus of the work on a single issue. Its songs and dances, which are very well-crafted and powerful in their own right, detract from the film’s overall suspense, and, on the other hand, feminist ideas do not allow Emilia/ Manitas’ hero’s journey to be presented psychologically. Nevertheless, “Emilia Perez” is a thought-provoking work which portrays the difference between worlds of masculinity and femininity.