Escobar

Entertaining!

Paradise Lost tells the story of a foreigner who goes to Colombia with his brother to open a surfing school and ends up falling in love with the niece of the infamous Pablo Escobar, the drug warlord. As you can imagine, his life spirals into chaos as soon as he starts getting serious with that girl. While he seems to be in good terms with the mafia clan at the beginning, as soon as Escobar's life gets complicated and justice tries to trap him, the lives of those around him follow the same disastrous path.

The tension of the movie comes from never knowing if the protagonist's love for his girl is going to be strong enough to put up with living with one of the most dangerous guys on earth at the time, or whether he is going to escape from the obviously choosing the wrong path. It's hard to tell if the movie is based on true events, (google can clarify that I'm sure) but either way, the film might easily have some resemblance with reality, since it is well known by everyone who Escobar was and how ruthless a man he came to be.

I would honestly not hesitate to watch it as a good Sunday afternoon movie. But bear in mind, it's also the type of film that you will easily forget.

Great psycho-thriller, draws you right in. Loved the understated style, movie manages to suggest what's going on without resorting to grisly torture scenes and other clichés. Most violence is shown after the fact, not too graphic. (Of course not suitable for children.) Great performances, beautifully filmed. If you love Apocalypse Now / Last King of Scotland type films where a mysterious megalomaniac is glimpsed or gradually revealed through the eyes of an outsider, you will probably especially like it (in this case it is just glimpses of Escobar, on one hand the family man, adored by his supporters, and on the other a completely detached and ruthless psychopath.) Of course Benicio del Toro is incredible in the role of Escobar and all the cast are excellent. Unfortunately it seems the title gave some viewers/critics the expectation that the movie should be a biopic of Escobar, and the fact del Toro was so good in the role just left people wanting more. But it is a really good movie nonetheless.

First thing I have to say about the movie: Benicio Del Toro. Although I am not a big fan of him, this movie shines with his charisma. Great performance from the first scene to the last.

Although the movie is about the clash between a mafia leader and his niece's boyfriend, there are several subtexts that can be pulled out. One of them is the love around this drug dealer by the fellow People of his country. He starts a fight against the government and he gets as many supporters as the legal side; maybe even more.

Josh Hutcherson gives us hope for the future movies with his great talent despite his moderate outlook. Throughout the movie you can't stop looking at amazingly beautiful Maria (Claudia Traisac) and I can't say these two both are the perfect match.

A few words for the director,Andrea Di Stefano; this is a very impressive story-telling for a first movie. I believe we'll hear more about him very soon.

Josh Hutcherson plays a surfer living in Colombia, who falls in love with a girl whose uncle is a politician attracted to drug trafficking, played by Benicio del Toro.

It's a dark tale about getting caught up with the wrong crowd and not being able to get out. The moral of the story is there but I really got nothing out of it.

A period piece set in the 80s, the movie does feel a little chopped together. A lot of Background story seems to go by so fast that I barely notice it from all the one-liners used to tell it.

But the hunger games star showed he could front a movie. He was charming and capable of a lot of dramatic tension. Good for him that he does have a seasoned award winning actor like Del Toro supporting him in this movie, but for the most part the whole thing falls on Josh's performance and he came through for me by getting me all up in his situation.

Depending on weather you like or dislike Hutcherson, or like me, don't have any feeling for him at all either way, will sway your opinion on the movie. The story is weak and the film making is very centered on the leading man's ability to make you like him.

I wasn't expecting much out of this film. But I do enjoy del Toro, as well as Hutcherson, so I thought I'd give it a shot. It was a little fast in some parts, but overall not a terrible film. For those saying it was based on true events, that's a big stretch. Nowhere does it say that it is based on true events. The movie is very loosely based around the final years of Pablo Escobar. Think of it like Titanic, true event, fictional characters. Neither Hutchersons or Traisacs characters actually existed. As for the ending, it's pretty obvious what happens, even if you don't see it happen on screen. I would have liked a little more explanation as to how characters ended up where they were through the film, but the movie doesn't lose anything because of it. In the end, it was an OK film with some wonderful acting. Worth a watch.