Emily the Criminal is a taut thriller airing on Netflix. This movie would be better titled Aubrey Plaza Steals Every Scene. In any other actor’s hands, this movie would have flopped hard.
The premise is Breaking Bad-esque: a recent college grad struggles to pay her bills. To make extra money, she does some petty crimes. While the supporting cast is perfectly competent, Plaza’s deadpan portrayal and snarky wit outshines them all.
Plaza does share some credit with director/writer John Patton Ford. His dialogue, direction, and pacing are snare-drum tight. Characters move and speak with clear purpose and intent. The movie breezes along in a zippy 97 minutes. Ford’s resume is unexpectedly short. This movie will help him expand it, quickly.
I also appreciate the grittiness of this movie. There are no absurd superhero landings or concussive punches. Every slap, door kick down, or electric shock causes real, palpable pain to the characters, with lasting repercussions. When blood is spilled characters slow and lose energy.
The movie is also 100% gun free. Set-in modern-day Los Angeles, that hardly seems believable. However, it also does not give any characters the easy way out. They must rely on cunning and guile rather than waving guns around and blasting everything in sight.
The ending is not high-octane, rather intelligent, honest, and surprising. Once again, no short cuts are taken here.
I really enjoyed the freshness of this movie. It looks like a lot of other movies, and the story is simple, but Plaza’s performance and the tight direction make for a fun watch.
