5 Reasons No One Likes ‘Emilia Pérez’ (Except The Academy)

The most shocking part of this year’s Academy Awards is that Netflix’s Emilia Pérez led the race with 13 nominations. For a movie to receive so many nominations it must be really good, right? Right?? The overwhelming consensus from fans is that no, Emilia Pérez is not a good movie.

First, what is Emilia Pérez about? Zoe Saldaña stars as gifted but underpaid lawyer Rita Mora Castro. She receives a mysterious job offer that promises her unimaginable wealth if she works for a seedy client. Rita accepts and discovers the client is infamous cartel kingpin Juan “Manitas” Del Monte (Karla Sofía Gascón).

Del Monte wishes to pay Rita to create a new identity and life for himself and (separately) his wife (Selena Gomez) and children. Del Monte will undergo gender-affirming surgery and live as a woman, Emilia Pérez. However, years after the surgery, Del Monte regrets abandoning her family and hires Rita to reunite them under the guise that Emilia is a cousin of Del Monte.

Her friendship with Rita also inspires Emilia to make amends for her past as a mass-murderer by creating a non-profit to identify the bodies of cartel victims and give their families closure.

Why don’t people like Emilia Pérez? There are 5 main reasons:

1. The musical aspects of Emilia Pérez are jarring. Netflix lists the film as a “drama” so viewers are not expecting the characters in a serious crime movie to suddenly break out into song. Emilia Pérez should have been marketed and categorized as a musical first, and a crime drama second.
2. Zoe Saldaña’s character is… just there. The whole first act is about Rita Mora and the dilemma of accepting a high-paying but morally bankrupt job with Del Monte. After she completes the job, we see Rita thriving in her new life in London. She seems truly happy and she deserves to live the life she dreamed of. Not only does Emilia Pérez show up to infringe on Rita’s promised freedom, Emilia takes over as the main character which is unsatisfying as the audience is more invested in Rita at this point.
3. It portrays a mass murderer as a sympathetic philanthropist. This should go without saying, but perhaps we don’t need a movie that shallowly attempts to humanize mass murderers?
4. The plot doesn’t make any sense. Emilia abandons her children because she thinks it is more important for her to live as a woman than to be with her children. She also states that she has unlimited wealth, but couldn’t think of a way to keep her children with her while making this transformation? The importance of Emilia not being recognized as Del Monte is also stressed, but then Emilia becomes the face of her own non-profit? Surely this diva with unlimited wealth either doesn’t need other donors to fund her philanthropy? Emilia putting her face out there (risking her and her children’s safety) is so beyond unnecessary in the first place. Surely she has heard of an anonymous donation?
5. It’s culturally insensitive. Every single group of people (except perhaps cartel kingpins) portrayed in Emilia Pérez has criticized the film as culturally insensitive. Many Mexicans hate Emilia Pérez, calling it “an insensitive caricature”. GLAAD said it is “a step backward for trans representation”. It has also been criticized for exploiting the humanitarian crisis of drug trafficking and being disrespectful to victims and their families.

Emilia Pérez has been nominated for Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best International Feature Film, Best Director, Best Actress (Karla Sofía Gascón), Best Supporting Actress (Zoe Saldaña), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Film Editing, Best Sound, Best Cinematography, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Original Score and Best Original Song.

It is currently streaming on Netflix.