--- title: "Emilia Pérez: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/emilia-perez/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/emilia-perez" critics_score: 68 critics_reviews: 18 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Emilia Pérez (2024): what the critics said Critics' score 68 from 18 reviews: 8 positive, 7 mixed, 3 negative. The critics split widely on Emilia Pérez. Praise clusters on Karla Sofía Gascón’s lead performance, which nearly every review singles out, with Zoe Saldaña close behind, and on Jacques Audiard’s nerve in yoking a cartel thriller to a musical. Most reviews reach for words like audacious or bold; the disagreement is over whether the boldness lands. The warmest notices treat it as an inventive reworking of the musical with heartfelt songs. The middle group, which is large, finds it exuberant but uneven: too many ideas, a third act that loses its shape, songs of varying quality. The reservations cluster on depth. Several critics feel it never gets beneath its glossy surfaces, and its handling of trans experience and of Mexican cartel violence draws specific complaint; Film Comment calls its thinking crudely essentialist, and The Guardian asks whether it trivialises a national tragedy. The spread runs from five stars to outright dismissal, with the harshest voices coming from the American film press. ## Evening Standard — Nick Howells Rating 5/5. 11 October 2024. Festival review. The critic describes it as a gloriously original, hip-swaggering work of weird brilliance with a hearty message about loving yourself and living your true path. The performances from the four leads and Audiard’s sensitive handling of the material are singled out for praise. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/emilia-perez-review-selena-gomez-zoe-saldana-b1187408.html) ## Radio Times — James Mottram Rating ★★★★★. 8 November 2024. The critic hails it as a wondrously inventive musical that redefines the genre, praising the score, choreography, and standout performances by the female leads, particularly Gascón's dual role. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/app/emilia-perez-review-a-musical-that-redefines-whats-possible-in-the-genre/) ## The Times — Kevin Maher Rating ★★★★★. 24 October 2024. The critic calls it one of the year’s best films, praising its audacious direction, exquisite and heartbreaking songs, and trophy-bait performances in an extravagant Mexican noir musical. [Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/film/article/emilia-perez-film-review-zoe-saldana-selena-gomez-ksk9fr008) ## Total Film — James Mottram Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 19 May 2024. Festival review. The review calls it a miraculous movie that reframes the musical in fascinating and surprising ways. [Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/crime-movies/emilia-perez-review/) ## Empire — John Nugent Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 31 October 2024. The critic finds Jacques Audiard’s outlandish musical thriller a little jumbled and misjudged in its treatment of characters, particularly trans ones, but praises its uniqueness and audaciousness. The cast, especially Karla Sofía Gascón, is highlighted for extraordinary performances. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/emilia-perez/) ## The AV Club — Natalia Keogan Rating C+. 6 November 2024. The critic finds the divisive trans musical audacious and transfixing in its spectacle but lacking cohesion, nuance, and strong songs or social insight. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/emilia-perez-review) ## Time Out — Phil de Semlyen Rating 3/5. 21 May 2024. Festival review. The critic sees it as an exuberant but uneven mix of cartel thriller and musical with a trans twist, praising Gascón's performance and some numbers but noting structural issues in the third act. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/emilia-perez-review-2024) ## IndieWire — Ryan Lattanzio Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 13 November 2024. The review deems the wild trans musical a memorable debacle that lacks psychological depth. It commends the bold swings despite frequent misfires. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/emilia-perez-review-selena-gomez-jacques-audiard-musical-1235006275/) ## The New Yorker — Richard Brody Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 11 November 2024. The critic calls the film an incurious musical that never gets beyond splashy surfaces, with performances by Gascón and Saldaña providing energy but the story lacking depth or substance in its characterizations and musical numbers. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-front-row/emilia-perez-is-an-incurious-musical-about-a-trans-drug-lord) ## Film Comment — Beatrice Loayza Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). 24 May 2024. Festival review. The critic calls the film a ludicrously misjudged narco-musical rooted in crude essentialism and cheap theatricality. It is a tonally disjunctive epic with plastic emotions that ultimately treats the central plight as a grand, lurid spiritual venture that curdles into abjection. [Read the review](https://www.filmcomment.com/blog/cannes-2024-gimme-shock-treatment/) ## Los Angeles Times — Robert Abele 1 November 2024. The critic praises Audiard’s full-bodied, colorful epic musical about transformation and redemption, highlighting its danger, boldness, and imaginative song-and-dance sequences, with standout work from Saldaña. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2024-11-01/emilia-perez-review-zoe-saldana-karla-sofia-gascon-selena-gomez-musical) ## Screen Daily 18 May 2024. Festival review. The critic describes it as a stylish, sensitive Spanish-language musical melodrama that poses intriguing questions about transformation and violence, praising Gascon's performance and the visual style. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/emilia-perez-cannes-review/5193701.article) ## Sight and Sound 24 October 2024. The critic finds the film bold and ambitious despite its genre mix and tonal shifts, praising its heartfelt look at gender transition and strong performances, especially Gascón's, while noting some musical numbers falter. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/emilia-perez-jacques-audiards-outlandish-telenovela-style-musical-shouldnt-work-it-does) ## The Guardian — Wendy Ide 27 October 2024. The critic is conflicted about the film, finding it a gloriously trashy and flamboyant potboiler with standout performances but questioning whether its handling of cartel violence trivialises a serious national tragedy in Mexico. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/oct/27/emilia-perez-review-jacques-audiard-zoe-saldana-karla-sofia-gascon-selena-gomez-netflix-riotously-entertaining-trans-mexican-cartel-musical) ## The Hollywood Reporter — David Rooney 18 May 2024. Festival review. The critic praises Audiard's ambitious genre-blending crime musical for its vitality and originality. The standout is Karla Sofia Gascón's magnificent, authentic performance as the title character. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/emilia-perez-review-zoe-saldana-selena-gomez-jacques-audiard-1235903402/) ## The New York Times — Manohla Dargis 13 November 2024. The critic finds Audiard’s showy musical about a trans Mexican drug lord diverting and off-kilter, with Karla Sofía Gascón’s performance adding soul and real stakes to the melodrama while Zoe Saldaña also shines. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/13/movies/emilia-perez-review.html) ## Variety — Peter Debruge 18 May 2024. Festival review. The critic hails the film as a daring, exhilarating Spanish-language pop opera about a cartel boss’s transformation and redemption, electrified by Gascón’s lead performance and Audiard’s audacity. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2024/film/reviews/emilia-perez-review-selena-gomez-zoe-saldana-1236008567/) ## Vulture — Bilge Ebiri 19 May 2024. Festival review. The critic calls the film fearless in its ridiculousness as an ambitious musical crime drama. It highlights the cast's strong work, especially Gascón and Saldaña, in bringing the tonal mix to life. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/movie-review-emilia-perez-selena-gomez.html) ## Deadline — Stephanie Bunbury Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 18 May 2024. Festival review. The critic finds the film a crazy but marvelous musical that works despite its outlandish premise. Audiard's direction is singled out for making the impossible conjuring trick succeed through strong performances and an eccentric tone. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2024/05/emilia-perez-review-jacques-audiard-selena-gomez-zoe-saldana-1235922122/) ## The Wrap Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 18 May 2024. Festival review. The critic calls the film a startling and delightful gonzo telenovela musical that hits a home run with its big swing. Zoe Saldaña's performance and the film's bold musical form are singled out for praise amid its over-the-top melodrama. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/emilia-perez-review-jacques-audiard-cannes/) ## Eye for Film — Richard Mowe Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 20 May 2024. Festival review. Audiard pulls off the unlikely premise of a Spanish-language musical about Mexican drug cartels and gender transition with frenetic energy that bludgeons the viewer into submission. The high-voltage score, dazzling technical trickery and remarkable ensemble of actors, especially Karla Sofía Gascón, stand out. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/emilia-perez-2024-film-review-by-richard-mowe) ## Digital Spy — Mireia Mullor Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 12 November 2024. The critic finds the film a love-it-or-hate-it audacious musical that is always fresh, daring and visually exciting despite major flaws and ridiculous moments. Outstanding performances by Zoe Saldaña and Karla Sofía Gascón help ground the story even as the high ambitions lead to some loss of control. [Read the review](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a62828425/emilia-perez-review/) ## Paste — Jesse Hassenger Rating 6.3/10. 2 October 2024. The jagged musical numbers provide bursts of energy and showcase strong performances, but the film sputters as the drama takes over and fails to explore its provocative premise meaningfully. It delivers something technically unique yet ultimately shallow. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/jacques-audiard/emilia-perez-review-zoe-saldana-jacques-audiard-musical-crime-movie) ## Collider — Ross Bonaime Rating 6/10. 13 September 2024. The film boasts three strong lead performances but is held back by its overabundance of ideas and lack of cohesion. Audiard’s ambitious genre-blending musical melodrama about a cartel leader’s transition ultimately spreads itself too thin. [Read the review](https://collider.com/emilia-perez-review/) ## NME — Sophie Butcher Rating 3/5. 25 October 2024. The critic sees the film as a frenzied, inconsistent experience whose blend of influences makes it unique but exhausting. The committed performances of the three leading ladies provide enough energy and emotion to make viewers somewhat glad they watched, though the twisting plot and schmaltzy sentimentality bog it down. [Read the review](https://www.nme.com/reviews/film-reviews/emilia-perez-review-zoe-saldana-selena-gomez-flawed-musical-melodrama-3805570) ## /Film — Jeremy Mathai Rating 5/10. 1 October 2024. Festival review. The film is a big swing that fails to connect as an audacious genre mash-up of crime thriller and musical, devolving into a cloying telenovela despite strong early moments and committed performances. Unfulfilled potential leaves it feeling like a half-completed thought experiment. [Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/1677578/emilia-perez-review/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/emilia-perez.md