Emilia Pérez is Netflix's new cross-genre crime musical

A crime musical about the leader of a Mexican cartel who wants to fake her own death before undergoing a sex change operation – this is definitely not the kind of risqué fare you see on Netflix every day. But that's how it is Emilia Pereza new film by French director and “renegade auteur” Jacques Audiard, starring Zoe Saldaña, Selena Gomez and Karla Sofía Gascón.

Coming soon to Netflix on 13 November, Emilia Perez follows four women in Mexico, each seeking their own happiness. Cartel boss Emilia (Gascón) enlists Rita (Saldaña), a failed lawyer on a dead-end job, to help her fake her death so Emilia can finally “live authentically as her true self,” Netflix explains.

Like many others, I've been largely dissatisfied with Netflix's film output for some time, in part because many of the films are so mediocre – they're not meant to offend anyone, but at the same time, they're meant to please almost nobody. However, in an interview with Netflix, Gascón said of the new film: “You have a musical that isn't a musical, an action film that isn't an action film, a drama that isn't a drama, a comedy that isn't a comedy. It's such a great gift and I'm so proud to be part of it.”

Manufacturing Emilia Perez It's all the more exciting that the film caused a stir at Cannes this year, taking home the Jury Prize alongside Saldaña for Best Actress. In other words, it's a far cry from some of the streaming giant's recent forgettable films, like Mark Wahlberg's silly spy drama. The Union and Jerry Seinfeld's Pop-Tart movie.

To Emilia PerezSaldaña gushed in a Netflix interview: “It was described to me as this film noir that didn't really exist in any of the traditional genres, but it was a musical. It was actually an opera and set in the world of crime, but there was supposed to be a sense of justice, validation and sanctification. And I just thought, 'What?' I had to read it more than once. And then I couldn't stop thinking about it.”

A Netflix movie that you can't get out of your head – what a novel concept.