Emilia Pérez

'Emilia Pérez' is a film that I feel like shouldn't work, yet I did actually have a positive two hours+ viewing it. The musical pieces do take some getting used to and I'm not entirely convinced by most of them, but again somehow it didn't overly bother me whilst watching. There's no doubt, for me, that the greatest part of this is Zoe Saldaña. I've seen her in many roles before and I love her in those, especially 'Avatar' and even in a tiny 'Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl' role, but I'd say this is her best performance from the 11 movies that I've seen from her. Outstanding! I also enjoyed those behind Saldaña, namely Karla Sofía Gascón and Selena Gomez; I watched the latter in 2012's 'Spring Breakers' a few weeks back, her acting has improved impressively. I do think if the cast weren't as strong as they are, I may have liked this much less. I'm only now seeing all the furore about this film, that Wikipedia article makes for quite the reading - what a mess! This is why I like switching off the noise, even if it does make me feel like that meme where that guy calmly eats his food while a brawl breaks out around him.

How is it a white Irish-American can speak better Spanish than the Spanish speakers in this train wreck? And.... a musical with "penis" and "vagina" as the lyrics as it pushes gender transitions? What we have is an insult to Spanish speakers, an insult that pushes the Latinx concept that most Latino's reject, and then pushes the they/them that lost Kamala the race... so of course it has 13 Academy Award nominations. But the nominations don't mean it's any good. It's crap, it's a really bad movie and I feel horrible for the native Spanish speakers that this movie mocks and belittles. But of course it's going to get a boatload of nominations, it's woke AF. So woke, it's another box office bomb.

Is _Emilia Pérez_ the riskiest movie in years? A Spanish-language musical from a French director, about gendered violence and corruption, starring a transgender actress as a Mexican cartel boss who abandons his family, vanishes into hiding and transitions to become a woman. It's A LOT. And yes, the film has drawn some criticism. But it’s obvious that the soul of _Emilia Pérez_ beats with the daring of a curious artist who prizes emotional authenticity above all else. Could you give up your own family to live as your true self? How much can a person change at their core? Does the 'wolf' remain a wolf? While director Jacques Audiard doesn’t claim to have the answers, what’s clear is the film's unquestionable passion. _Emilia Pérez_ is a pure force; designed to grab us by the hearts and minds and wow us. Read our full take on _Emilia Pérez_ at good.film: https://good.film/guide/why-emilia-perez-is-the-riskiest-movie-youve-seen-in-years