Emily the Criminal

Emily the Criminal

Emily, who is saddled with student debt and locked out of the job market due to a minor criminal record, gets involved in a credit card scam that pulls her into the criminal underworld of Los Angeles, ultimately leading to deadly consequences.

  • Released:
  • Runtime: 120 minutes
  • Genre: Crime, Drama, Thrillers
  • Stars: Aubrey Plaza, Theo Rossi, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Gina Gershon, Jonathan Avigdori, Bernardo Badillo, Craig Stark, Brandon Sklenar
  • Director: John Patton Ford
 Comments
  • herbdavey-12055 - 12 January 2023
    Aubrey moving up and for a reason...
    I really like Aubrey Plaza a lot. I didn't know her much beyond Parks and Recreation and her deadpan comedy so I've been enjoying a different range from what I was accustomed to in her recent roles. White Lotus is when I first saw this new side and I thought she was effective, intense and mysterious (in a good way) and she commanded the screen. She's also gorgeous and has a fantastic figure. Seems super comfortable with her body as well.

    I'm excited to keep seeing her up on the screen more often. This movie was good for 3/4 and then the story got kind of stupid and not believable, but it was still a pleasure to watch and easy to watch.
  • ryanpersaud-59415 - 6 January 2023
    Solid, If Unspectacular.
    Emily the Criminal is the type of movie I typically really like: a small scale, stripped back social drama where individuals navigate circumstances (sometimes) beyond their control. It's a movie with a protagonist who you root for because I think we can all empathize with her to some extent, but a character whom is deeply flawed and hard to entirely get behind (especially due to some very poor choices throughout the film).

    Aubrey Plaza's Emily is a young adult saddled with crippling debt, working a low status job, and directionless; she has a felony on her record that has undoubtedly affected her job prospects. Yet, neither Plaza or Patton-Ford portray her as an angel and a victim of circumstances; she's given multiple opportunities to do better, to be better, and she just chooses not to. Perhaps conditioned to think that quick money is better than sacrifice, Emily is drawn into a life of crime and things, escalate, to say the least.

    This isn't a very flashy or visually interesting movie, which is sort of the point. This is a slice of life movie, intending on showing life as it is and not as the filmmaker thinks it looks. Yet, there is something inherently forgettable about this style; there's not a scene or moment that really sticks out that isn't due to the set itself (the end, if you've seen this, you know what I'm talking about).

    I'd also say some of the acting and specifically, accents, in this movie are a bit...wonky. Anyone familiar with Arabic or Arabic accents will know immediately that there were some questionable directing decisions made that came off as truly distracting to me. I also think this movie wraps up a little too neatly for my liking and could've used maybe one scene to feel complete.

    But, all of this is to say that Emily the Criminal is quite an effective, interesting, and thought provoking little thriller. It's one of those movies that isn't flashy and is a nice change of pace for a lot of people. I'd definitely recommend, even if it's not the best thing in the world and I can't really see myself revisiting it.