Maria Full of Grace (B or 3/4 stars)
A teenager named Maria (Catalina Sandino Moreno) is forced to support her poor family by working as a floriculturist in 'Maria Full of Grace', a Colombian drama written & directed by Joshua Marston. Being an immature 17 yrs. old, Maria quits her job and allows herself to get pregnant. Depressed & frustrated, she feels the pressure to do something big for herself, but mainly for her family. This film tells the story of her accepting an offer to work as a drug mule in America. The plot meanders a bit. But overall, the content of the story, and Moreno's performance makes this a disturbing, riveting look at the drug trafficking.
Although she doesn't love her boyfriend, Maria becomes pregnant & her life turns down a rebellious, dangerous path. As a drug mule, Maria would be swallowing 62 cocaine-filled pellets and smuggling them into the states. She flies to Manhattan and barely gets through U.S. Customs (the fact that she's pregnant prevents the officers from taking the X-Ray that would surely show the pellets in her stomach). She dispatches of the pellets, but witnesses the ruthless brutality that encompasses the world of drug trading (Lucy, a fellow mule, meets an untimely fate when she is cut open for removal of pellets). Desperation sets in for Maria.
Maria feels the responsibility of letting Lucy's family know what has happened, but then some more things go wrong! Eventually, Maria is faced with the prospect of escaping this dangerous life that she entered not so long before. She's not giving up on life just yet. Will she physically recuperate from her tumultuous mission? Will she have the baby? Will she return to Colombia and provide for her family? Or will she remain in the U.S. to start a 3rd life (with her baby)?
This is a suspenseful, plausible, affecting film. The 1st scene where Maria has to swallow the egg-sized pellets of cocaine is gag-inducing. I'm having a hard time swallowing my saliva just thinking about it. And to think that if one of those pellets burst, it's finito for its carrier. Topics of oppression, poverty, teenage pregnancy, the effects of drugs on all parties, etc. are covered here. The script allows for very little melodrama; everything feels raw & authentic. But it also meanders & teeters on boredom, at times. The film's storyline is interesting enough; but it wouldn't be what it is if it weren't for Catalina Sandino Moreno's compelling performance.
Although she doesn't love her boyfriend, Maria becomes pregnant & her life turns down a rebellious, dangerous path. As a drug mule, Maria would be swallowing 62 cocaine-filled pellets and smuggling them into the states. She flies to Manhattan and barely gets through U.S. Customs (the fact that she's pregnant prevents the officers from taking the X-Ray that would surely show the pellets in her stomach). She dispatches of the pellets, but witnesses the ruthless brutality that encompasses the world of drug trading (Lucy, a fellow mule, meets an untimely fate when she is cut open for removal of pellets). Desperation sets in for Maria.
Maria feels the responsibility of letting Lucy's family know what has happened, but then some more things go wrong! Eventually, Maria is faced with the prospect of escaping this dangerous life that she entered not so long before. She's not giving up on life just yet. Will she physically recuperate from her tumultuous mission? Will she have the baby? Will she return to Colombia and provide for her family? Or will she remain in the U.S. to start a 3rd life (with her baby)?
This is a suspenseful, plausible, affecting film. The 1st scene where Maria has to swallow the egg-sized pellets of cocaine is gag-inducing. I'm having a hard time swallowing my saliva just thinking about it. And to think that if one of those pellets burst, it's finito for its carrier. Topics of oppression, poverty, teenage pregnancy, the effects of drugs on all parties, etc. are covered here. The script allows for very little melodrama; everything feels raw & authentic. But it also meanders & teeters on boredom, at times. The film's storyline is interesting enough; but it wouldn't be what it is if it weren't for Catalina Sandino Moreno's compelling performance.