Maria Full of Grace
|
List Price: Our Price: $3.49 You Save: $6.48 (65%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $2.00 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases |
|---|
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
Movie Reviews of Maria Full of Grace
Movie Review: A fantastic achievent.
Summary: 5 Stars
Catalina Sandina Moreno is one to watch. Its no wonder that she got nominated for an Oscar. Yes, I still marginally respect the whole affair. Both of my parents are colombian and I lived there for approximately 8 years. And no none of us have any affiliations with drug dealers. I guess this movie kind of hit me close to home, not because anyone in my family has been a drug mule mind you but because I recognized the speech patterns, I knew the places they were talking about, i had been to the places they were talking about. But that's not the reason why I cherish this movie so much. Rarely have I cared so much about a character. I love that girl. I've known girls like that. I wanted her to be allright, I wanted her to always be safe, I wanted her to stop doing stupid things, I wanted her to stop lying, tell the truth. This movie had a sense of dread which I have never felt in a movie ever. I just wanted her to make it so much. She's so charming, so good natured for a future drug mule anyway. But yet you still care for her and that I think is this movie's greatest achievement. That after she's done all these things and basically brought trouble upon herself, it's for a noble cause but still. you still like her, you still want her to do good, you are worried, you are sad, you are happy, you are amused, you are relieved. Highly recommended.Movie Review: Wrenching, but Redemptive
Summary: 5 Stars
"Maria Full of Grace," a debut film for both its director and lead actress is a phenomenal movie, and the religious nuance of the title is totally apt. The poster art is not.
Set in Columbia, and Queens, NY, it's the story of a young woman who knows there must be a better life, but whose options are limited. She becomes a drug mule, ingests half a kilo of heroin in thumb-sized latex wrapped pellets , and flies to NY to make the delivery. To tell more would be to spoil the story; suffice to say the movie does not flinch in presenting Maria's life, choices, training, or the aftermath of her adventure.
Catalina Sandrino Moreno may be the most transparent and natural actress I've ever seen. Her eyes, body, and vocal inflections reveal all, but telegraph nothing, and her presence held my eye over anything else on the screen. I think she's in every scene, and I couldn't spot a false note in anything she did. Her character, Maria, never seems to be in over her head, but certainly up to her eyeballs, and you can see the wheels turn as she makes decisions. I never lost hope for her.
Director Joshua Marston keeps the story tightly focused, and makes all the right choices.
I hope "Maria Full of Grace," stays on the radar for a long time. It deserves to become a classic.
Movie Review: Excellent Film
Summary: 5 Stars
I have to say that by far Maria Full of Grace is one of the most compelling, gut-wrenching, and profound movie that i have seen in awhile. I am not going to talk about the plot, since most reviewers have pretty much summed it up already. This film is a must see! I believe that this movie really does get into the real nitty-gritty behind the lives of "mules" as well as the lives of average everyday people who are trying to earn the means of a better life, in the most dangerous (and illegal) consequences. Sometimes this movie may make you cringe, depressed, overwhelm, and towards the end, make you think. What i loved most about this film, unlike so many films in the industry, is that you actually feel for the characters because for one, they look like average everyday people, not like pin-up dolls from Vogue magazine or something. And second, the acting and environment is so real and superb. There is no sugarcoatedness or glitter on this film; its raw, down-to-earth, and realistic to its setting and theme. For some reason many films lack the essence of showing REAL people with real issues that are worth to be seen on celluloid. I look foreward to the future career of the main actress of this film, and of the director, who truly deserve to be recognized for their success on this film.Movie Review: a tale of tragedy, courage and life
Summary: 5 Stars
Catalina Sandino Moreno stars in this intimate and moving portrayal of a young girl (named Maria) growing up in an impoverished South American village. Her life begins to spin out of control when the boy childish she has been dating begins to drift from her, she quits her job de-thorning roses (a beautiful and subtle image for the woman she allegorically portrays) and realizes she is pregnant.
Hope arrives in the opportunity to smuggle drugs to America swallowing condoms containing cocaine. She accepts and we are drawn into the tale wondering what will happen to her and the three other young women working as "mules" for the drug runners.
You can tell by the title that Maria symbolically portrays Mary, the mother of Jesus: a beautiful young woman arrives pregnant and unmarried in the big city (in this case, New York) where she has no place to stay and no one to trust. Her innocent child brings her hope and in the end, frees her from her past.
By contrasting the difficult choices of a real-world teen with the overarching biblical narrative always faintly in the background, the filmmakers have created an exquisite and, in the end, redemptive tale of life on this broken planet. Highly recommended.
Movie Review: From a life that's hard to swallow, to the drugs that's leaves you hollow.
Summary: 5 Stars
When I first heard about María Llena eras de Gracia and its subject, I had many doubts about the treatment of such a delicate subject and how Colombian this movie was, with a writer/director from the USA; but when I heard the interviews and read the reviews I got really interested in the film and had the opportunity to see this film this afternoon.
Maria Full of Grace is one of the better films of 2004: well acted, well written, and very unique in its' story. From the beginning to the end Joshua Marston chooses to present the story in a way that has us relating and sympathizing with Maria in her plight to find her place in the sun.
A very real topic with very real portrayal and acting, this is definitely one of the better films to come out. Unusually well managed without being junked up with the usual Hollywood tawdry tinsel and situational extremes, this very human drama does more pound-for-pound than most films many times its size. It presents its story at a quick pace and leaves you wanting more.
Overall, I enjoyed the film and recommend it to anyone in general, being a great triumph in film-making. I hope to see more films from Joshua Marston in the future.