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      Maria Full of Grace

      R Released Jan 18, 2004 1 hr. 41 min. Drama List
      97% 145 Reviews Tomatometer 87% 25,000+ Ratings Audience Score Seventeen-year-old Colombian Maria (Catalina Sandino Moreno) is desperate: pregnant and with a large family to care for, she's forced to leave a demanding job after an altercation with her boss. Needing work as soon as possible, she encounters charming Franklin (John Álex Toro), who offers her a dangerous job as a drug mule. With cocaine pellets in her stomach, Maria flies to New York for the drug drop-off, but finds her new line of work may be far riskier than it initially seemed. Read More Read Less Watch on Fandango at Home Premiered Sep 29 Buy Now

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      Maria Full of Grace

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      Maria Full of Grace

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      Critics Consensus

      In a striking debut, Moreno carries the movie and puts a human face on the drug trade.

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      Audience Reviews

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      Alejandro E Una disección a un trabajo fáustico. La penosa realidad de las mulas sudamericanas narrado en forma orgánica, dando la idea que uno está viendo hechos reales. El que no quede impresionado, debería ver un doctor. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/17/24 Full Review Christina L Gripping. Super realistic. Watch this film. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/05/23 Full Review Taylor L If Maria Full of Grace was made exclusively in the United States, it would likely either be a shaky-cam thriller or an over-the-top drama with South America shown in washed-out color. But instead, this drug mule story from writer-director Joshua Marston feels brutal without spilling over into aggrandized excess; there are no glorified highs but the lows feel like they linger around each corner as Catalina Sandino Moreno as Maria (in an Oscar-nominated performance) resorts to her risky new occupation out of a combination of factors - the lure of quick money, the pit of poverty and the pressure of family, a desire for independence, and simply falling victim to fast talk. Though the settings are awfully familiar - airport hallways and domestic apartments - the film manages to capture that sense of pulse-pounding suspense associated with risking it all, a testament to the performances, the writing, and direction. Both a tough examination of the lengths people go in order to earn money, and being cast out on a river of desperation without a paddle. The reason people don't watch this movie isn't because it's poorly made, quite the contrary. They don't watch it because it's well-made and both upsetting and dark. Still one of the best films on the subject matter, and on the face of poverty beyond slow, somber advertisments featuring that one song from Sarah McLachlan. (3.5/5) Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Thomas M The best international movie ever made! With the best acting performance from Catalina Sandino Moreno! And the best filmmaking debut ever from Joshua Marston! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/26/22 Full Review dave s While there are countless movies that deal with the drug trade, rarely does a film look beyond the law enforcement and kingpin angle. This is not the case with Maria Full of Grace, a sobering movie about a young girl who avails herself of the opportunity to smuggle drugs from Bogota to New York. Catalina Sandino Moreno gives a subtle but powerful Oscar-nominated performance as Maria, who, after quitting her job removing thorns from roses, is unable to resist the financial temptation to consume sixty-two packets of heroin and board a plane to America. Told from her perspective, the film wisely avoids the trap of focusing on the police and the drug lords. The film effectively builds suspense as it follows her from the initial contact with the supplier to a tragic but ultimately optimistic experience in New York. Maria Full of Grace is a gem. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review steve d Not my taste story-wise but Moreno is so good you can't look away. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      Critics Reviews

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      David Ansen Newsweek The movie puts us in Maria's shoes, taking us step by suspenseful step through her physical and spiritual ordeal. Mar 13, 2018 Full Review Candice Frederick Reel Talk Online A stunning performance by [Catalina Sandino] Moreno is the hallmark of the film... Rated: A Sep 12, 2017 Full Review Empire Magazine Rated: 3/5 Apr 1, 2006 Full Review Richard Propes TheIndependentCritic.com This film is shot with great simplicity, and the accompanying score is one of tremendous, well, grace. It is perfect for this film. Rated: 3.5/4.0 Sep 15, 2020 Full Review PJ Nabarro Patrick Nabarro The drug mule theme is somewhat of a distraction from Marston's more transcendent aim to push the story as a parable about one woman's self-determination. Rated: 4/5 May 23, 2020 Full Review David Gurney Common Sense Media Unflinching drama of the journey of a drug mule. Rated: 4/5 Jan 1, 2011 Full Review Read all reviews

      Movie Info

      Synopsis Seventeen-year-old Colombian Maria (Catalina Sandino Moreno) is desperate: pregnant and with a large family to care for, she's forced to leave a demanding job after an altercation with her boss. Needing work as soon as possible, she encounters charming Franklin (John Álex Toro), who offers her a dangerous job as a drug mule. With cocaine pellets in her stomach, Maria flies to New York for the drug drop-off, but finds her new line of work may be far riskier than it initially seemed.
      Director
      Joshua Marston
      Screenwriter
      Joshua Marston
      Distributor
      New Line Cinema
      Production Co
      Santa Fe Productions
      Rating
      R (Language|Drug Content)
      Genre
      Drama
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (Theaters)
      Jan 18, 2004, Original
      Release Date (Streaming)
      Dec 22, 2017
      Box Office (Gross USA)
      $6.5M
      Sound Mix
      Surround
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