Shedding light on the fearful existence & perilous life that women & children are forced to live in Mexican towns ravaged by drug trade, cartel violence & human trafficking, Prayers for the Stolen (Noche de fuego) captures this brutal reality through the coming-of-age journey of a young girl & her two best friends and makes for a gritty, affecting & heartbreaking slice of social realism.
Written & directed by Tatiana Huezo in her feature film debut, the film benefits from her earlier efforts as a documentarian as she utilises a similar raw style & uncompromising approach that adds a realistic touch & unflinching quality to the drama and allows it to unfold at its own pace while remote setting, grim atmosphere & sincere performances further strengthen the material.
However, the emotional impact the film was aiming for doesn't translate as well as it should've, for much of the plot remains uneventful, some scenes drag on for too long while others are cut earlier than expected, thus resulting in a picture that's harsh & harrowing in bits n pieces yet is unable to get under the skin. The film presents the difficult state of affairs but doesn't truly dig into it.
Overall, Prayers for the Stolen explores friendship, endurance, loss of innocence, cartel terror & endemic violence to give the audience an insight into the dark side of modern-day Mexico, and begins Huezo's feature filmmaking endeavours on a promising note if not a rewarding one. The performances are strong & gripping but the characters & situations depicted still required more development & fine tuning. Worth a shot anyway.
