‘Emilia Perez’ is a cheerfully whimsical opera mixed with a telenovela

Emilia PerezThe latest film from visionary director Jacques Audiard is so many things at once that it defies description: it’s an opera, a redemption story, a cartel thriller, a tale of trans identity, a telenovela, and about a dozen other things rolled into one.

The film, which will be released on Netflix, follows Rita (Zoe Saldana), a lawyer living in Mexico City who defends criminals from the consequences of their actions. When Rita is taken to meet the cartel’s leader, Manitas Del Monte (Karla Sofía Gascón), she is shocked by his request: he wants her to find a doctor who can discreetly perform sex reassignment surgery and help him complete his transition into the woman he always knew he was.

Rita agrees, even taking responsibility for Manitas’ wife, Jessi (Selena Gomez), and their two sons. But four years later, Rita is shocked when Emilia Pérez enters her world, a woman with a new life who is looking for redemption and a chance to reconnect with Jessi and their children.

All of this barely describes what’s happening, as these events are also peppered with colorful, inventive musical numbers. The lyrics leave something to be desired, and often feel like characters are singing their raw thoughts out loud rather than something meticulously composed. That may be due to the language barrier (the entire film is in Spanish) and something lost in translation in the English subtitles, though.

The core trio of women here give fantastic performances. It’s a joy to watch Saldana return to her dance roots, and she executes Damien Jalet’s choreography with fierce precision. Saldana particularly shines in a number called “The Bad,” in which Rita opens up about the criminals she and Emilia sleep with, taking out her frustrations in her imagination by jumping on tables and dancing with an energetic fury.

Selena Gomez is a welcome surprise, shedding all vestiges of her Disney Channel roots in her portrayal of a hard-boiled narco’s wife. Gomez makes Jessi so much more than the telenovela version of a gangster’s sweetheart, while also approaching the soapiness of such a character with aplomb. The film’s climax in particular sees Gomez shine in new ways as a dramatic actress, conveying heartbreak and fear through a tortured physique that drives her into the unpredictable state of a woman on the brink of something dangerous.

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But it’s Karla Sofía Gascón who is the true revelation here. The trans actress brings pathos and personal connection to Emilia’s radiant, newfound happiness as she embraces the identity she’s always felt was her true self. Gascón breathes a candid sense of wonder and relief into Emilia, while also weaving in deep regrets for the aspects of her life she’s had to sacrifice.

Emilia sets out to find redemption, using her past connections with criminals and drug cartels to help families find their loved ones where they disappeared. (The film points out that more than 100,000 people have disappeared in Mexico in the past 10 years.)

Emilia Perez is an ode to embracing your identity, a parable of forgiveness, and a love story that is both romantic and platonic. It is a wild, raw, glitter-soaked ride that defies convention and classification.

Despite a slow start and the widely varying tones, Emilia Perez works best when you surrender yourself to its frenetic, raw magic. It’s an ambitious, provocative, big swing of a record — and if it doesn’t always hit a home run, it at least manages to get on base consistently. Grade: B