God… I really didn’t want to talk about Emilia Pérez, but here we are.
I am one of the biggest supporters of creating a movie that authentically represents certain groups of people. There are some great examples of representation out there, movies that really hit the mark and explore race and social justice or the complexities of gender or some other cause.
Other times, they don’t, and Emilia Pérez is a clear example of that.
There’s been a lot of rage over Emilia Pérez’s win at the 2025 Golden Globes, and as someone who hadn’t seen the film yet, I knew I needed to check it out. I’m a proud Latina and a member of the LGBTQ+ community, and since a big part of the discourse revolved around that, I wanted to see the movie.
Yeah, those parts weren’t very well represented, in my opinion, and they also lacked a glaring issue of this film, and I have to talk about it.
As Both A Latina And A Part Of The LGBTQ+ Community, I Don’t Think This Is Representing Either Group Very Well
Let me preface this by saying I am not Mexican, nor am I transgender. I am a proud Puerto Rican and bisexual. Still, I at least feel I can comment on this as part of the community in general – and I have to say that this movie is not properly representative of either of those communities.
I am the first person you could come to with a recommendation for the best Latino shows to watch, the best LGBTQ+ movies out there, or whatever it is that you are craving that truly represents these communities in such beautiful, artistic ways. Emilia Perez really tried and failed.
I’ll give the studio credit, at the very least, for casting a transgender actress to play Emilia. Personally, I really think the entire cast did well. Their acting was quite good. As a fan of Zoe Saldaña’s best movies, I think she did kill it in this film.
But that brings me to the next issue – Zoe Saldaña isn’t Mexican; she is mainly Dominican. Karla Sofía Gascón, who plays Emilia, is from Spain. Selena Gomez, with all due respect, is half-Mexican-American, and she is probably the closest any of these main stars are to being Mexican. There are so many amazingly talented Mexican actors out there, and while I’m sure there’s a reason why they went with these three, it just didn’t feel like it was as represented as it could have been.
Mexican cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto spoke to Deadline about how he feels this is not authentic Mexican portrayal.
There are just things they could have done better.
The same goes for representing the transgender community. Again, I can’t really make that much of a comment on that, as I am not a part of it. But from my outside perspective, it felt like the sensitivity of that subject wasn’t handled well. Even the LGBTQ+ organization GLADD said it wasn’t a great representation.
Emilia’s story felt as if it could have had heart, but it was lessened for cheap thrills towards the second half of the movie and essentially made the experience of transitioning almost into a joke.
But The Biggest Issue Is The Music. This Should Not Have Been A Musical
Yeah, I can’t stand the music in this movie. Oh my god, someone tear off my ears.
Look, I know we’re all trying to make catchy musical music and it feels like most movie musicals (unless you’re Wicked breaking the box office) don’t do that well. But they can’t all be the best Lin Manuel-Miranda songs and be super catchy.
Emilia Pérez ‘s music is just fast-talking. There aren’t any real harmonies—half the music felt like words thrown at you with no real depth. The lyrics were not memorable, and the only part that everyone does know is that singular line when Rita (Saldaña) is in a hospital asking about how much it will cost for a gender transitioning surgery.
Yes, the only catchy part of this music is the line that degrades an entire community, and that is a problem.
I understand what they were going for—I really do—but I just can’t get behind it. The songs aren’t good, and the treatment of them makes the subject matter of this film even worse.
This Could Have Been A Good Film If It Was Given The Proper Love And Care
I honestly, deep down, believe this could have been a good movie—a great one, even.
The idea of a mafia boss wanting to leave their life behind and become a woman, something they always wanted and feel is their true body, is a story that could really work if given the proper treatment. Instead, it’s replaced by poor casting decisions and a storyline that is not handled with heart, mixed in with songs that are somehow trying to catch your attention but fail miserably.
This movie could have been good if it had the proper people behind it. But I personally think that the director (who, by the way, isn’t even of Latino descent) did a terrible job of accurately portraying Mexico (which he apologized for) and used a topic as sensitive as transitioning in probably one of the worst ways possible. All of it is topped off by songs that I feel were more to cause a stir than to actually entertain and serve the story.
And that’s the real shame – the potential of what could have been. But sadly, we’ll never know now.
Look, there are some out there to watch, but trust me when I say you should leave Emilia Pérez out of it. While I’m not sure what award-givers see in this film… but I’ll gladly skip it the next time I see it on my recommended page on Netflix.