Review of 2004's Maria Full of Grace
Catalina Sandino Moreno Shows One Columbian Way of Life
Jan 18, 2009
Maria Full of Grace is a disturbing account of the Columbian drug world. It's amazing that Maria and Blanca survive their stay in New York City. This movie should be shown to young Columbians in schools as a scare tactic to deter them from becoming drug mules.
The title character of Joshua Marston’s Maria Full of Grace is in many ways a typical teenager. Maria (portrayed flawlessy by Catalina Sandino Moreno) is adventuresome enough to scale a building just to be on the roof with her boyfriend (who happens to be too much of a wimp to follow her up there).
In other ways, Maria is far different from the average teenager portrayed in Hollywood movies. Maria has to work to help support her family. She suspects she is pregnant, but handles the probability with amazing maturity. When faced with financial necessity, Maria takes a job that is not common for teenage girls.
A Day in the Life of Maria
When we first meet Maria, she is working in a flower plantation dethorning roses. Not a glamorous job, but one that is readily available in her small Columbian town. We quickly learn that Maria’s sister, Diana, does not work away from home. Diana’s son, Pacho, seems to be coming down with something.
Maria’s mother insists that Maria help to pay for Pacho's medicine, promising that her next paycheck will be all hers. When Maria announces that there will be no “next paycheck,” her sister and mother rage at her for quitting her job.
The Next Job Opportunity
Franklin comes into Maria’s life almost by accident. When Maria sees her friend Blanca’s love interest at a dance, she persuades him to dance with Blanca. He introduces his cousin, Franklin. After Maria’s boyfriend refuses to dance with her, Franklin takes her for a spin around the dance floor.
As Maria waits for the bus to Bogotá, where she hopes to find a job, Franklin pulls up on his motorcycle and offers to take her himself. During a pit stop for lunch, Franklin tells Maria about a job opportunity of which he knows. He explains that she’d smuggle drugs and would get to travel to the United States. Maria hesitates, but her curiosity is peaked. In Bogotá, Maria meets Javier (her new boss) and Lucy (another mule).
A Visit to Her Sister
Against Maria’s better judgment, Blanca also agrees to become a mule. Maria, Lucy, Blanca, and another unnamed mule all travel to New York City on the same flight. Lucy is obviously ill, but gets through security unscathed. Maria and the fourth mule are both pulled aside for questioning.
Because Lucy has given Maria her sister’s address to use, she claims that she is simply in New York to surprise her sister. The guards are skeptical and plan to x-ray her stomach. However, they discover from her urine sample that she is, indeed, pregnant. Maria is free to go.
The three mules are taken to a sleazy motel to “pass” the pellets. Lucy continues to get sicker, but their holders refuse to get a doctor. When Maria wakes in the middle of the night, she finds the men and Lucy gone and the bathtub full of blood. Maria insists that she and Blanca run.
They only have one place to go: Lucy’s sister’s home. Carla is suspicious, but helps them out, thinking they are trying to find jobs in New York. Maria tries to tell her what has happened, but can’t find the words.
A Baby Changes Everything
While Maria and Blanca argue about what to do with the pellets in their possession, Maria stumbles upon a women’s clinic. She begs to be seen by the doctor and ends up getting an ultrasound. She is visibly moved by the sight and sound of her unborn child.
Eventually, after much ordeal, Maria calls the emergency number that Javier gave her. The two men from the motel meet the girls and are happy to count all the missing pellets. They try to take off without paying their mules, but Maria and Blanca put up a good fight. Maria even presses them for Lucy’s share, but they laugh and drive away.
Knowing that once she has been trained as a drug mule, she will be called repeatedly to do this work, Maria dreads returning to Columbia. Her friend Lucy is dead, and Lucy’s sister Carla is infuriated with Maria.
As Maria and Blanca stand in line to board their plane back home, Maria stares at her ultrasound photo. In the end, she makes what she feels is the best decision for her baby.
Sandino Moreno is very convincing as a stubborn, scared, willing-to-do-whatever-it-takes adolescent. Other than Maria and Carla, we really don't learn much about other characters' motivations. Director Marston shows viewers only what he wants us to see of Columbia. The views of Manhattan from Maria's taxi rides are idealistic, showing the magic of New York City that immigrants often dream of. Viewers come to love Maria and cling to her desperation and hope for a better future.
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