Rosario Tijeras

This was a really good Columbian film that starred Flora Martínez (Proof of Life) as a hit-woman who falls in love. That sounds like a formulaic movie that has been made a thousand times, but Martinez really brings home the film in a way that will keep you watching.

I don't know much about Columbia, but i was really fascinated with the celebration of death before the funeral of Jonhefe. They borough him to the bar and sat him in a chair and had a party, including a lap dance for the dead man. Makes it kind of a grind house film, but it was a film about love and loss.

It's worth a look just to see Martinez.

In 1989, in Medellin, the prostitute and killer Rosario Tijeras (Flora Martínez) has an affair with the playboy Emilio (Manolo Cardona) and is introduced to his best friend Antonio (Unax Ugalde) in a night-club. The relationship of Rosario with Emilio is limited to sex and she befriends Antonio, who is in love with her. After the death of her brother Jonhefe (Rodrigo Oviedo), Rosario and Antonio become closer and she falls in love for him. But Rosario is chased by her enemies from the past.

I had a great expectation for this movie based on the awards highlighted on the cover of the DVD but after watching it, it became a huge disappointment. The plot has a promising beginning, mostly because of the erotic scenes with the sexy Flora Martínez and her naked body. Her mysterious character is intriguing in the beginning. However, the dull story goes nowhere and I had trouble to write a summary since nothing happens but a silly triangle of love in the landscape of the underworld of Medellin in a messy soap-opera. The characters are awfully developed: for example, Rosario Tijeras is one of the most ambiguous characters I have ever seen. Is she an expensive prostitute and a killer, and also a drug-dealer or what? Where is her money charging large amounts for sex and murders? She seems to be a powerful and cold woman in the beginning, but she is disclosed extremely fragile like a housewife along the story. Is the upper-class Emilio just a playboy? And who is Antonio? Why are these guys connected to the underworld of drugs? The celebration with the dead body of Jonhefe is funny but totally out of the context. The dinner at Emilio's home is another terrible moment of this forgettable flick. My vote is five.

Title (Brazil): "Rosario Tijeras"

I went to go see this movie this summer in my visit to Colombia. I was completely under the movie's spell, went to see it twice. The character is so raw, so corrupted, but they demonstrate the beauty that can come from someone who's lived in her own hell. My family is originally from Colombia, so I understand the situations well. I saw a comment on a message board here saying that she wasn't a convincing hit-man...obviously you aren't familiar with the situations in Colombia, I've known of many female hit men that were beautiful...they just grew up in the wrong neighborhoods. Beauty isn't only found in the high-class society...it's everywhere, and if anything, her beauty gives her even more power. The fact that the movie goes back and forth, always returning the beginning of everything, and relating it to the end keeps you in tuned, its clever that the director chose not to point out the changes in time throughout the film...it keeps it flowing...no interruptions from the world that this movie has sucked you in. The main character has such a beautiful pain within her, you come out of the theater in love with her...whether you're are a man or woman..she'll dazzle you. The actors in this movie did an incredible job as well.

Overall, this movie mixes the drama of life, and laughs at it at some points. You're guaranteed to cry, laugh, gasp, claw your nails in your seat...and come out replaying all the scenes in your head.

The movie is one of the best made Colombian Films I have ever seen. I have seen many Colombian films and this one is up there with the best. The sound, cinematography and detail is great and refreshing since most Colombian films suffer from lack of this elements sometimes. Flora and the guys performances are phenomenal, their accent is not very good (Manolo Cardona's is the closest) so if you know the accent of that region really well, it turns you off a bit. But still is a great, exaggerated adaptation of the book. The way they show certain strong moments of the story with such subtlety was beautiful. My only complaint(small one) is the music...they play late 90s sounding tech no which was not the music of 1989. If you want to see other recent Colombian films, I suggest: "El Rey", "Perder es Cuestion De Metodo", "El Baul Rosado", "La Sombra del Caminante" which came out in the last 2 years. I am very proud of this product as a fellow COlombian

This movie was released first in Colombia because it's based in an excellent Colombian book, the movie shows us a Medellin (Colombia) of the 80's, and although you see some holes that are fulfilled if you ever read the book, you'll also love it because it's so well done, that you'll never yawn even once; the performance of the actors is awesome (except the one of Unax Ugalde he has to make a paisa accent and he really sucks on it), but above all the cast, the best is Flora Martinez, she plays a sexy deadly woman, who kills for money and kisses them before shooting them while plays with the heart of two men, who happen to be best friends, anyway is a very good movie and the rest of Latin America and US will be able to enjoy it next year, I hope you watch and enjoy it as much as I did.

Ps: Paisa is like a southern accent around here, I don't know if you've ever heard an interview of Juanes, if you have that's a paisa accent!!!