Miss Bala

One of the most exciting young talents around, the Mexican director Gerardo Naranjo approaches the hot-button topic of drug violence through the perspective of an unlikely, unwitting heroine: a Tijuana beauty pageant contestant (Stephanie Sigman) who stumbles into the path of ruthless cartel operatives and corrupt officials. Although inspired by a true story, Miss Bala avoids docudrama clichés and tabloid sensationalism, and instead evokes the pervasive climate of fear and confusion that has enveloped daily life in some increasingly lawless pockets of northern Mexico. Using long takes and fluid, precise camera work, Naranjo fashions a highly original thriller: an anguished and harrowing mood piece with an undertow of bleakly absurdist humor and moments of heart-stopping action. A Fox International Productions release.

Throughout the ongoing drug conflict in Mexico, multiple stories have come to the media attention without being entirely clear for everybody.

Miss Bala shows the connection between models and young attractive drug cartels, women that have been in some occasions being misjudged by a narrow idea of the current dynamics in many Mexican towns and cities.

Not a black and white context movie that accurately shows the many sides of a conflict and a war that has been reduced to a body count.

With a very good construction of characters, the film shows the inside and probably the reasons that make the drug conflict in Mexico one without an easy way out.

Highly recommended to get a wider idea of what people are going on right now, either as a civilian, a cop or a hit-man for a drug cartel.

This is a dramatic, creepy, draggingly real and touching good watch. Technically this movie impresses, with solid acting and location shooting, in a fresh way to make you feel a part of the struggles.

This Latin America film is low-key, being removed from Hollywood formulas like modern foreign cinematography, being unusual, distinct and intense. It's independence makes it, with memorable ground-shots and a patience requiring build up to the horror expected.

Miss Bala, tells the mostly believable tale of a beauty queen who survives an event shoot-out and thus has to evade the criminals, as she is the lobe eye-witness. Yanked into a world of crime, Stephanie Sigman survives, with little fight back, playing a usual male role in a drug war thriller.

I enjoyed the film but critics have diluted it's good points with negative criticism over the acting and premise of a modern world cinema piece.

I'm an Englishman who has lived seven years in Mexico. I disagree completely with the previous review. I thought this was a remarkable film and scary in what, to me, appears to be a realistic, credible depiction of life in Tijuana. I thought the main actress was exceptional in the way she allows us to view the film through her eyes and shows her increasing trauma and dislocation as she is drawn more and more against her will into the dark world of organized crime, the police, the army and their overlaps. To me the film shows the terrible loss of innocence and the violence that is being perpetrated every day in Mexico against the Mexican people as exemplified and represented by the main character.

Beware of those viewers who really just want to see another Femme Nikita or something similar with non-stop unrealistic action led by a pretty babe.

Miss Bala isn't like that. (Dumb title though. Why not just keep Miss Baja? Are they afraid we gringos can't handle that name?) This film is about the way innocent Mexicans are caught up in the narco wars when they're just trying to live their own dreams.

In addition to the strong theme, the movie works because the story does more than carry thematic resonance -- there's suspense (which requires patience that the video-gaming generation may not be able to muster) and a very sympathetic central character. No, she's not always active, but she is reactive; she isn't just passively passing through this story. We care about her because she has a dream that has been sullied, because she cares about others (her friend Zuzu and her brother), and because, even after she's been abused, she's willing to take a risk at the end to prevent a murder.

Add all this to a well-shot movie with an unusual but effective mise-en-scenes in many of the beats and very scary bad guys, and, well, the sum of it all is a very strong movie.

By the way, there are no continuity lapses in the story and the finale makes sense -- but again, it's going to take some thinking. This movie is not an American action pic -- there's more thought behind it, and more thought needed to digest it.