The French Cannes Film Festival winner “Emilia Pérez” is not just the most original musical comedy crime film of the year, it’s among the most daring.
Written and directed by French hitmaker Jacques Audiard (“A Prophet,” “Rust and Bone”), “Emilia” tackles contemporary issues with humor, horror and mighty imagination.
A feared Mexican cartel boss undergoes gender transition to become Emilia (Spain’s Karla Sofía Gascón plays both roles). Her wife (Selena Gomez) and children are spirited to safety in Switzerland. All this is handled by Emilia’s chosen lawyer (Zoe Saldaña), often in choreographed musical numbers.
At Cannes “Emilia” won the Jury prize and its women shared Best Actress. France’s entry for the Best International Feature Oscar, Netflix streams the film Nov. 13.
As the lawyer whose life blossoms and is transformed by Emilia, Saldaña, 46, called the role, “Scary, because these were elements of myself. I grew up as a child drawn to ballet, performing in musical theater.
“Jacques did describe this as an opera but in its bones were these women on this journey to find their own authentic freedom. I liked the fact that it was dressed in this reality that was so alien to me and yet so familiar.
“So, I jumped at the challenge and then at the end, that challenge became the gift I got. I was able to reconnect with parts of myself that I’ve lost along the way. I’m so proud that I was a part of history.”
As the cartel wife and mother, Gomez, 32, is bitter, hard, angry – and often furiously funny. It’s a long way from her “Only Murders in the Building” series. But Gomez is no stranger to offbeat auteurs, having starred in Harmony Korine’s raunchy “Spring Breakers” and Jim Jarmusch’s vampire comedy “The Dead Don’t Die.”
“Honestly,” Gomez said at a post-screening discussion, “I feel acting is something I’ve been passionate about personally and to have an incredible filmmaker like this is really special.
“All the parts that I have had, I’ve earned. I auditioned for this. I was terrified. But it was amazing.
“I think that’s what I would love my career to be like. I would be honored to sit and create beautiful movies. I don’t know how to explain it. I love it! It just feels like I finally get to do the things that I dreamed of doing and this was a dream come true for me, a special project.”
Added Gascón, 52, “It’s a film that goes beyond the screen, that touches hearts. You might always think about good and evil. I like to think there’s this fight between light and darkness — and this film is bringing so much light into the world.”