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Maria lives in Colombia where she works in a flower shop de-thorning roses. In her town, this is probably the best job one could hope for even though the bosses work them too hard. All of her money goes to supporting her family including her out of work mother and sister (complete with baby). Maria wants out. She wants out of her job and out of responsibility for others. She wants to live for herself and not for the people who take her for granted. She finds a way to escape to the United States, but it requires making a difficult choice. She has to become a mule (traffic drugs through her stomach). Is this really what she wants?

New writer/director Joshua Marston comes out in full force in this emotionally charged film. At first what’s so surprising about this film is how an older white man can write such an in depth, personal story about a 17 year-old Columbian girl’s life. However, Maria goes through very typical teenage problems in her home country that lead to such atypical actions/resolutions. The resentment she has for her family is well founded and could easily be seen in the United States as well. It’d be pretty safe to assume that some young girls also turn to drug related businesses to escape or to better provide for the family they begrudge. So, the story obviously isn’t all too far-fetched.

In fact, the emotional outbursts and arguments and general social situations seen in Columbia throughout the first half of the film are very well written. Anyone can look back at their own pubescent life and recall similar situations and form a connection with Maria’s strife. That’s what makes it so difficult to see her get involved as a mule. We don’t want her to take that dark road, because we escaped and we know she could find another way too. Who knows what’s going to happen to her.

Another great aspect of the film is that you really don’t know what’s going to happen. There may not be significant 180 degree turns in plot and storyline, but unforeseen and (more importantly) un-foreshadowed obstacles arise with regularity. Also, whereas “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” somewhat glorifies drugs and makes something of a joke out of them, “Maria” handles them realistically. The effects of drugs aren’t really the main focus of the grit, but rather the horrors associated with the business itself.

The only real downside is that Maria, played by newcomer Catalina Sandino Moreno, isn’t the best actress. She won best actress honors in Seattle’s International competition, but I found her performance to be a bit much. She’s not horrible, but she tends to overact. Only a couple of the smaller supporting characters truly seem like they’re comfortable in front of the camera and the rest don’t know what to do with themselves.

Other than the lack of appropriate body language and facial reaction subtlety, the movie is very interesting and quite gripping. It’s moving, powerful, occasionally frustrating, but ultimately cathartic. Marston avoids using clichéd devises, which make “Maria” look less like a glorified student film and more like the great professional drama it is. The cinematography and storytelling are superb. This is a very well done film that deserves to be seen.

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