80
Larraín’s odd little film dances to the beat of its own drum, that’s for certain. But it does pay off in a wholly satisfying way.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
83
Ema doesn’t always dance to a clear or recognizable beat, but anybody willing to get on its wavelength will be rewarded with one of the year’s most dynamic and electrifying films.
40
The Hollywood Reporter by David Rooney
A work of self-conscious experimentalism that's too stilted and distancing to invite involvement, it gets some mileage out of the pulsating rhythms of reggaetón street dance but otherwise is so fragmented it lacks forward motion.
88
In the film, the literal union of bodies is the only logical means of conveying the reestablishment of emotional bonds.
60
There’s so much to enjoy in Ema that it comes as a surprise that there’s so little there.
60
Screen Daily by Jonathan Romney
At once a visually expressionistic hymn to female agency and liberation, a psychological thriller that always stays one step ahead of the viewer and a flamboyant reggaeton dance musical, Ema will strike some as a heady celebration of a movie, while leaving others bemused by stylistics that sometimes overpower narrative and psychological plausibility.
70
What’s novel about Ema is that Pablo Larraín has made a movie that, in its form, is every bit as warped and jagged and jarring and difficult to cuddle up to as its heroine.
91
The Playlist by Robert Daniels
Larraín’s Ema will grate some. Even so, it’s one of the most ambitious and visually stunning films of the year.
75
The Film Stage by Rory O'Connor
Ema is Larraín at his most freeform.
80
While I confess that I found Ema to be a notch down on his best work, it’s still hugely distinctive and daring and may well be a grower.
This is a really great looking film. The colors are saturated and the cinematography capturing the mountainous but urban Chile is great. The dance scenes feel like music videos, but still feel cohesive with the plot and drama.