Film Review: Miss Bala

I was kind of rooting for this one. That might sound weird, considering it’s just a junky, disposable action movie, but there are some things worth getting some hopes up. It’s a female led actioner, it’s directed by Catherine Hardwicke, who has long gotten the short end of the stick in Hollywood despite kicking off one of the biggest franchises in the 2000s when she directed the first Twilight, and it seemed like there was at least an attempt at hiring appropriately, since a vast majority of the crew was Mexican. It may not seem like much – again especially for a movie like this – but I think it’s something worth noting.

Unfortunately, the end result is disappointing. Having not seen the original 2011 Mexican film that this is a remake of, I can’t speak to what ideas, themes, or messages this may or may not have gotten across, as compared to the original. The problems of this movie are the worst kind to really put to words because the kind of issues presented in this remake only serve to make the film bland, generic, and forgettable as all hell.

The basic setup is a strong one. Gloria (Gina Rodriguez) is an American makeup artist, who goes to Tijuana to assist her best friend, Suzu (Cristina Rodlo), in a beauty pageant that she is competing in. However, during a night out, they attend a club that gets attacked by cartel members led by Lino (Ismael Cruz Córdova). In the chaos, Suzu disappears, and Gloria is captured by Lino and his men. She is now forced to use her wits to survive, and find her friend.

I’m sure much is going to be said about how the film feels misguided in the current political climate, given how it almost exclusively portrays its Mexican characters as either evil cartel members or corrupt men in positions of power, or victims of one of those two. It’s not a particularly well rounded portrayal of Mexico, and while it does show DEA agents with equally malicious, their presence is too brief to leave an impression. I’ll leave further nuances to Latinx critics who might have more to add on this than I could, as my issues all stem from the film simply being a mediocre action movie.

The characters are all very underdeveloped, and the film moves at such a pace that we don’t get the time to fully invest ourselves with what’s going on. We get a few minutes to establish Gloria and Suzu’s friendship before the attack, we only get too few details on who Gloria is as a person beyond her relationship with Suzu and the way she handles herself with the cartel, which makes her eventual arc into a badass ring completely hollow.

There’s also a very strange choice made to bring this weird sexual tension between Gloria and Lino. An early moment has Gloria stuck in a bedroom while he takes off his shirt, revealing a well toned body. That plus the fact that Córdova is a handsome and charming guy just makes things confusing, in terms of what the filmmakers are trying to get across. I wouldn’t mind the idea if it was explored, but there is zero payoff to all the tension, so it just leaves you puzzled and kind of grossed out.

The action sequences are competently put together, but they are all utterly toothless. The film is near bloodless, restricted by its PG-13 rating, which takes away the impact from what is clearly meant to be shocking acts of violence. The threat never feels palpable as a result, which wouldn’t be as much of a problem if it’s meant to be operating on a more fun and exciting level, but it’s not, it’s meant to be horrific and ugly. I don’t know what is to be gained by allowing teenagers to see this.

Thankfully, the actors make the film more easily watchable. Rodriguez is a charismatic lead, and she can emote like nobody’s business. Córdova makes the most out of the charming scumbag type. In certain points, he brings a light touch and a humanity that puts you off guard. Anthony Mackie brings some weight to a small role as a cartel contact from the American side of the border. There’s not a bad performance in the film, and I can see everyone excelling had the material been more tightly constructed.

I was hoping that the film would be great, given the people involved, but Miss Bala is, unfortunately, a miss. It’s not a terrible movie, the actors are all engaging enough to save it from being a complete waste of time. It’s just underwritten, lacks an emotional and visceral impact, and it’s full of choices that range from uninspired to misguided. Even for anyone wanting a passable action movie will likely come out unsatisfied. But the silver lining in all this is that it makes me far more curious to check out the original Mexican film.