Emily the Criminal Reviews

We've all felt it at some point - that nagging, back-of-the-mind feeling that comes with overwhelming debt. Emily the Criminal bottles that feeling, and then shows what can happen when someone is driven to their absolute limit. When morally questionable people get an opportunity to pay off debts through a fraud scheme, they just might take it. Writer and director, John Patton Ford, harnesses this feeling and tells the story of a girl who goes to great lengths to breathe again. The story is believable, and many viewers may even relate; by the end of this film the audience may be tempted to root for the bad guys. This is a unique sort of heist movie, and it doesn't disappoint.Emily (Aubrey Plaza) is struggling to get by. When she dropped out of college due to a felony assault charge, she was left with a boat load of debt and no job offers. Therefore, she takes a job at an L.A. catering company just to pay the bills and is constantly reminded of the life she wishes she had. When she gets a tip from a coworker to do a mysterious "dummy shop," she is intrigued and decides to meet with the ringleader, Youcef (Theo Rossi). Emily quickly finds that he is running a credit card fraud scheme and paying dummy shoppers to go buy TVs, so he can turn around and sell them. Even though the job is illegal, it almost seems harmless, and it hooks Emily with the prospect of paying off her debt.Although Emily the Criminal is very entertaining, it's not exactly an edge-of-your-seat thriller. Ford presents this movie more as a character piece, evident by the consistent close-up shots of Plaza. His style is very distracting at points, as he never really gives the audience the chance to breathe and take in the scene. It is very clear what Ford wants you to see, because there will literally be nothing else in the frame. This can also be said about the plot, although very engaging, the story is stuffed with not-so-subtle commentary on the state of the American workforce. The rookie director touches on everything from student debt to unpaid internships, as a plea to get the country to wake up to the struggle millions of people go through every day.The acting in this film is wonderful, as Plaza and Rossi really feed off each other. For this movie to work, the actors needed to feel real, something that absolutely shines through. While watching, one can understand the struggle that Emily is going through and could very well argue a case to defend her, no matter how illegal it may be.Emily the Criminal is a visualization of the extreme actions that could be taken with one's back against the wall. At just over 1.5 hours long, the film is paced perfectly. There is never a dull moment, and the story will keep evolving until the credits roll. Even with Ford's off-putting style of direction, the plot and acting are enough to give this crime drama a shot.