User reviews

I am Mexican, and I can tell you that this movie is an awful representation of the narcotics problem in Mexico. While the story initially seemed interesting, it quickly became ridiculous. The main premise of the film is that a cruel assassin drug lord becomes a martyr after losing his penis. Additionally, Selena's acting is subpar; she can't even speak Spanish well, despite being cast as a Mexican character. None of the main actors are Mexican, and their Spanish accents come from Spain and the Caribbean, and frankly incomprehensible in Selena's case.

Overall, a good idea turned into a bad movie.

The problem with this movie is not Selena's Spanish, I don't find this movie particularly bad but some of the dialogue is really cringy and as a Mexican none of the people from here use the terms that were in the movie. The portrayal of Mexico in this film is very stereotypical and sometimes that isn't bad, but I think they should had cast real Latin writers and supervisors to make this movie more accurate and respectful to the country. The fact that the director doesn't speak Spanish or even English speaks volumes of the commitment to understanding what the movie is about and the emotions that triggers.

Also the songs are horrible.

The only thing salvageable is Zoe Saldaña's performance.

I will start out by saying I am not a fan of operas. However this film was not what I had expected. The main characters were mostly unlikable. The plot was rather ridiculous. Certain actors were very miscast. Selena Gomez needed Spanish lessons. I am sure that anyone who lives in Mexico will hate this movie. The director isn't Mexican. I saw all the awards at the Golden Globes and that is the ony reason I decided to watch it. If you like any of the actors, you may want to give it a try. However I would have to say watch at your own risk. It is one of the worst films I have seen in the recent past.

Emilia Perez isn't a bad movie, but it felt somewhat flat. At times, the story seemed too easy for the characters, lacking tension or conflict. Emilia, in particular, transforms into an overwhelmingly positive character, even though we know from the backstory that she wasn't always so good.

The movie tackles a wide range of themes but struggles to fully explore them. Instead of diving deeply into any one idea, it spreads itself too thin, leaving several threads underdeveloped.

As someone who doesn't typically enjoy musicals, this film didn't change my mind. However, I can appreciate that this was the director's vision, and I know many viewers will enjoy the musical elements. To its credit, some of the musical numbers were well done, especially those performed by Zoe Saldana. Her performance was a standout and arguably the film's biggest revelation, elevating many scenes with her presence and talent.

Overall, Emilia Perez is an enjoyable film. While I don't quite understand its acclaim at Cannes, it has its moments.

Sorry, I've got to say it. EMILIA PEREZ IS NOT A GOOD MOVIE. It's not a Razzie film by any stretch, but it's practically incoherent narrative flow, at times excruciating dialog and lack of internal logic leave it as a mediocre straight-to Netflix commoner in the movie space. I'll give you an example of its bad script, in the movie the characther says "Bienvenido" which means Welcome, but in the context of the conversation she means to say "Your Welcome", "De nada" in Spanish. It seems they did the writing in French and use google for translation. Yes, it covers some important themes and issues, but that doesn't make your movie good. You still have to build a fundamentally good film around the issues or it's just noise. And that's Emilia Perez... just noise.

This is an ambitious film that certainly succeeds in combining several genres. It is also a film that manages to fascinate and captivate for its whole, long running time.

However, there are two major problems: First: the film is ridiculously moralistic.

Second: it is absurd to believe that nobody would immediately question the identity and therefore the background of the main character. Her motivation is legit, she wants to make amends, but it is mindboggling that the filmmakers apparently thought it could go unquestioned when the protagonist, a mysterious woman in every respect, carelessly decides to enter the spotlight.

"Emilia Pérez" is, at best, just okay. It feels incredibly overhyped, and I honestly don't understand how it's winning so many awards. Zoe Saldana delivers a strong performance, but the rest of the cast is just average.

The film tries to mix crime, drama, and musical elements, but the execution is uneven. Some scenes drag, making the pacing feel sluggish, and the emotional moments often seem forced rather than genuine. While the cinematography and production design are impressive, the storytelling lacks depth. It's a film that aims high but doesn't fully deliver. A 6/10 for me-decent but forgettable.

As a Spanish native speaker i found this movie disrespectful and childish. The spanish speakers characters can barely pronounce two words, turning the whole script into an uncomfortable caricature. Although disguised as a modern production, they fall into the same errors of typecast Latinos into same old stereotypes. The only valuable thing is the attempt to offer something different by mixing a Spanish language film with a musical, however its execution becomes irritating to watch. I'm sure any positive reviews must come from someone totally unfamiliar with the Spanish language, as this is a determining factor in making this film totally inedible and a endless meme material.

Just finished watching Emilia Perez (2024) and it was fine I guess. There is a lot to like and dislike in this movie.

Positives for Emilia Perez (2024): The movie looks good with some great cinematography. The movie does get ambitious with the blending of genre thrown into the mix and I appreciate that. The performances from Zoe Saldana and Karla Sofia Gascon are very good. The musical numbers are fun to watch. And finally, I thought that the movie did a great job at telling it's transgender story.

Mixed for Emilia Perez (2024): While the movie is certainly ambitious with its blending of genres, there are elements to this that felt out of place in this movie. The musical numbers feel like they just came out of nowhere and it felt jarring at times.

Negatives for Emilia Perez (2024): The movie is way too long and I feel that this movie could've told its story with a shorter runtime. The movie lost my interest almost immediately and it just became background noise for me.

Overall, I admired the filmmakers and actors for being ambitious with this movie, it just fully worked for me. However, I would still recommend this movie to people, if they are interested with this movie.

The hard truth about this movie is that people who have visited Mexico keep coming only to Cabo and Cancun where drugs, alcohol and sex are still a thing; instead of educating themselves and visiting Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey, or Puebla. The United States of America citizens are the main consumers of narcotics in the world. Natural born consumers of anything they see such the latest IPhone. As long as these ignorant people exist, Mexico will be unsafe for us the citizens.

And yet somebody thought it was a good idea to make a movie about this. And to make things worse, filled with stereotypes.

There is no place for this kind of content.

I think the film juggles too many themes, and none of them are fully explored, leaving the narrative feeling rushed and incomplete. And as a result, it feels like a collection of ideas rather than a cohesive story.

I also didn't quite understand why it was framed as a musical-this choice felt disconnected from the rest of the story.

The performances are solid, but the characters aren't developed enough to create a lasting emotional connection.

However, I really liked the cinematography, beautifully shot and visually captivating.

To sum up, the movie leaves you wanting more depth and clarity.

This movie is considered one of the best motion pictures of the past year? How? What a miserable experience. Why is this movie a musical? WHY? None of the songs do anything to advance the plot or tell us more about the characters, in fact the awful songwriting makes every scene with a song feel like instead of getting a deeper understanding of anything through song, the song is being used to tell us things that we can already see on screen and would be way more effectively communicated through better visual storytelling. The songs also don't really have any structure to them, they don't go anywhere. It genuinely feels like it was translated by Duolingo and the awful delivery of the lines (especially from Selena Gomez) doesn't help matters at all. Karla Gascón is fine...but not that fine to be nominated for an Oscar.

Enjoyable enough movie with two demanding leading roles and two supporting roles requiring excellent performers. The first two are played by Zoe Saldaña and Karla Sofia Gascón, the second two by Selena Gomez and Adriana Paz. This quartet shared the Best Actress award at Cannes 2024. They deserved it. Saldaña in particular is a revelation.

Of writer-director Jacques Audiard's previous films, I've seen four (The Beat that My Heart Skipped, A Prophet, Rust and Bone, and The Sisters Brothers), each memorable in their different ways. None of them prepared me for this one, so hats of to him for not getting stuck in a genre rut.

There's a lot of story and a lot of singing in Emilia Pérez. When the singing is paired with Damien Jalet's incisive choreography, the effect is thrilling. Otherwise, the songs drag the movie down. They are musical-theatre lite, don't dig deep, so are not up to the dramatic demands put upon them. They're at their best in the rap-inclined numbers, where rhythm is the most important element.

The moral of Emilia Pérez seems to be that we can never slough off the past, change who we are or what we want. It's a strangely bleak vision to present in a musical.

I am speechless... I'm guessing all the positive reviews are from people who a) don't speak Spanish and b) wanted their caricatures of Mexicans and trans people confirmed.

The dialogues are insufferable, no one speaks like that, the music is jarring, the accents (even though Zoe Saldana is clearly making a huge effort. Let's not even talk about Selena) are not good.

The bad words sprinkled thought the movie feel so unnatural, not only because of the delivery, but how they are used. This was clearly written by somebody with some vague knowledge of Mexican culture, but definitely not enough to make something good.

The only redeeming quality this movie has is that it's undoubtedly pretty. That's it.

Mexican people should avoid it at all costs.

Came to write this after seeing its gala screening at the London film festival.

A wild, insane roller coaster of a film that mixes crime, comedy, musical and thriller all into one and succeeds with flying colours!

The four actresses at the core are the strength and they were directed to perfection by Audiard.

Karla plays her character pre transition and post as it comes to her naturally, having underdone it publicly as an actor. It's a powerhouse performance that is so of our time. I'm proud to be alive in a time when a trans actress plays a trans role. And not only that, she nails it. The tragedy of leaving a life but the promise of the one she's always needed.

Zoe gets to sing, dance, cry and laugh and everything which I think an actor dreams of doing, let alone in one film. I had never seen a film of hers before and I am so happy this was my first because she shines! There's a scene of her in a car, where realising what has just transpired, she breaks down in hysteria. Think Margo in I, Tonya or Glenn in Dangerous Liasons. That scene alone should win her an Academy award. And she has a beautiful voice!

Selena, for whom I was most excited to see this film, kicks it out of the ballpark. Playing a mob wife, that icy, storm-simmering-below-the-surface kind of woman which she needs to revisit IMO because as a young girl who endured intense scrutiny and then went through a psychosis, she knows it too well what's it like to keep a lid on too long. The one time during the screening where I felt I was having an out of body experience is where her character Jessi finally unleashes her emotions onto us the audience after years of being oppressed. The agony and anger is heard in her voice. It's evidence of why she has said acting is her true calling and how passionate she is about it. It would be stupid to still think she's a disney kid and still has something to prove. Her acting journey is truly so exciting as a fan of almost 2 decades.

Lastly, Adrianas character is like the sunshine in the otherwise dark and twisted world the film lives in. She is poignant! And it perfectly complements the other 3 actresses work. She brings love and softness to the story through her work.

One major thing to note is that this film is like an opera. It reminds one of the Umbrellas of Cherbourg, which was also almost entirely sung. Emotionally it's definitely intense like one, with small moments of calm when you realise you're watching a film.

The cinematography was brilliant. At the end of the film, selenas character lays almost unconscious on the passenger seat as her lover drives in rage. The way the camera pans across the car to her face... it felt like a painting, very poetic but tragic.

So glad to have watched it before it's netflix release. It's amazing when a film can make you feel like this. To take you out of your normal and drive you a bit crazy.

Only money is capable of making someone consider this "film" a good representation of history, culture or anything, on its own or considering the Mexican context. The number of nominations and awards only demonstrates this, that the outpouring of money moves the "vote". The Mexican majority itself finds the film disrespectful. A French director who thinks he "knows" enough about Mexican culture, an international cast (mainly American) with a Mexican actress who isn't even being considered in the awards campaign. It's simply bizarre and frightening that the film industry and academia genuinely consider this work.

This movie is a complete disaster. The music is terrible, the singing is unbearable, the storyline is shallow and nonsensical, and the acting is completely flat. It's filled with bad references and cringeworthy moments that make it feel like a parody of itself. A true humiliation for Mexican cinema and culture. The fact that it received nominations and awards only proves how biased and sold-out these institutions are. Don't waste your time on this movie. There are plenty of better films out there. Avoid it at all costs. Watch anything else instead; even the worst low-budget movies have more heart and effort than this mess.

In what universe is this movie up for 13 Oscar nominations? No, no, Hollywood is trolling us right? I'm not even going to waste time outlining the complete lack of talent required to produce this film, and the complete lack of integrity of all the reviewers who are lauding this film for one reason only..."THE MESSAGE" must go out to the ignorant people. They must take their medicine, no matter how disgusting it tastes...Well I'm not going to take it anymore. I'm done with the Oscars. I'm done with Hollywood. I'm done. In what universe is this movie up for 13 Oscar nominations? No, no, Hollywood is trolling us right? I'm not even going to waste time outlining the complete lack of talent required to produce this film, and the complete lack of integrity of all the reviewers who are lauding this film for one reason only..."THE MESSAGE" must go out to the ignorant people. They must take their medicine, no matter how disgusting it tastes...Well I'm not going to take it anymore. I'm done with the Oscars. I'm done with Hollywood. I'm done. In what universe is this movie up for 13 Oscar nominations? No, no, Hollywood is trolling us right? I'm not even going to waste time outlining the complete lack of talent required to produce this film, and the complete lack of integrity of all the reviewers who are lauding this film for one reason only..."THE MESSAGE" must go out to the ignorant people. They must take their medicine, no matter how disgusting it tastes...Well I'm not going to take it anymore. I'm done with the Oscars. I'm done with Hollywood. I'm done.

The music is awful (objective) The characters are awful (morally questionable, really bad writing) Representation is awful (being all inclusive but telling "they didn't like Mexico" and only representing vague notions about everything else, even the trans representation is wrong in many ways) Privileged people thinking how exotic is to live in a country full of "violence" as if it was the wild west.

Devoid of the logical rationality behind human rights.

Finally, making the literal comparison of a cartel leader becoming a SAINT.

They absolutely have no idea of the real world.

Even from the title they thought of the most common stereotypical name...

Also it's really ironic how they used Google translate but couldn't use google search. I'm not even asking for realism, just for them to show they didn't do less than minimum effort.

The critiques of this movie as inauthentic and cringy are not wrong. In particular the music was really bad, the songs are barely songs, they're more like chants. On the other hand this movie tells a unique story and has great preformances by Zoe Saldana and Karla Gascon. Zaldana in particular is the only one who is entertaining in her musical numbers becuase she is actually a good dancer and a comelling preformer. I almost felt sorry for Selena Gomez how could she look good when her songs and dialouge were so bad? But Saldana and Gascon kept me watching until the end. I think this would have been much better as a drama and not a musical. And as for people who will say that this is not Mexican, well they are right about that.