Miss Bala (2012)

Sadly Over-hyped

just watch it!

Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

I was reading on the recent arrest of the Mexican drug kingpin Joaquín Guzmán Loera aka El Chapo. One of the biggest cartel bosses of Mexico, when you read the wikipedia page of this guy and you see this movie then you realize everything that's happening is actually the reality of what goes on around there.You follow a woman who decides to inscribe for a beauty contest and then becomes witness of a cartel shooting in a bar. When she falls in the hands of the cartel she becomes sort of a pawn in the 'games' they are playing. Wars between cartels, government officials, police and international criminals.Its an insane ride into the harsh reality of Mexico.

I thought this movie was fantastic and some great acting.WOW. This is like the real deal and her acting drew you into it so innocently and unknowingly. Her character just wanted to get into a beauty show and look what happened all so fast by being in the wrong place and wrong time. I know of many a few stories over the years as a bodyguard where i seen all to real this stuff happen. great story great movie, great job putting this together. Yeah there could of been some improvements but this movie deserves more credit then what it got. Weird part when they scan people with metal detectors, the detectors go off which means it found something, ie. gun. knife etc, but yet they let them go like just going through the motions for the movie. in real life especially with the general, no way you will be strip searched for that

Mexican screenwriter, producer and director Gerardo Naranjo's fourth feature film which he co-wrote with screenwriter Mauricio Katz, is inspired by real events in the life of a Mexican model and beauty pageant winner named Láura Zúñiga. It premiered in the Un Certain Regard section at the 64th Cannes International Film Festival in 2011, was shot on locations in Mexico and is a Mexican production which was produced by producer Pablo Cruz. It tells the story about a 23-year-old woman named Laura Guerrero who lives with her father and younger brother Artoruro in the state of Tijuana, Bala California in Mexico. Laura enters a beauty contest called Miss Baja California with her friend Jessica at a place called Millennium, but whilst they are getting ready to go home a group of organized criminals surrounds the building.Distinctly and brilliantly directed by Mexican filmmaker Gerardo Naranjo, this finely paced fictional tale which is narrated almost entirely from the main character's point of view, draws an instantly moving portrayal of a Mexican woman who unwillingly gets pulled into a drug trafficking war. While notable for its naturalistic milieu depictions, fine art direction by art director Ivonne Fuentes, sterling cinematography by cinematographer Matyas Erdely and use of sound, this character-driven and narrative-driven story depicts a somewhat sparse and engaging study of character.This at times riveting action-drama which is set in in the westernmost city of Mexico in the early 21st century during an ongoing drug war between rivalling drug cartels and Mexican government forces and where a woman who wishes to win a contest so that she can give her brother a good education is taken hostage, is impelled and reinforced by its cogent narrative structure, substantial character development, prominent style of filmmaking and the fine and understated acting performance by Mexican actress Stephanie Sigman. An eloquent, stylistic and dramatic thriller.

The story of a young woman (Stephanie Sigman) clinging on to her dream to become a beauty contest queen in a Mexico dominated by organized crime.Living in Wisconsin, I know precious little about the Mexican border. But I have written articles on foreign policy and how America's decisions have affected the gangs of Mexico. This film showcases some of that, focusing on the darkest possible angle.Actress Stephanie Sigman is incredible, having to be a very visual actress in this film: we see her silently cringing or running from gunfire more than she speaks. But I think that this may be harder than just delivering dialogue: her character is kidnapped by gangsters, forced to commit criminal acts, constantly being faced with the possibility of death.While the gangsters here are ruthless, and rightfully so, there was a political point being made that did not escape me: the presence of DEA agents in Mexico. Whether or not you support the war on drugs, there is good reason to question how American police can patrol the streets of Mexico. Do Mexican federales drive around El Paso? I think not. Their presence does not justify the violence from the gangs, but it does raise the question of why a foreign power is facing a domestic problem.