Maria Full of Grace: United States Failing Global Expectations

1186 Words3 Pages

Maria Full of Grace, written and directed by Joshua Marston, is a film portraying the Colombian drug trade. Marston being born in the U.S, includes some international socially fragile aspects within this film. He shows the globalization of the flower and drug trade, within Colombia. Incidentally showing the globalization of the film industry as well. As this film reaches towards a specific audience who are sentimental to the negative activities in the global south. Marston includes an unrealistic portrayal about immigrants in America. Plus, he depicts the U.S. as a safe haven for all those who struggle. Making Maria Full of Grace a perfect film to analyze, pointing out how Marston unsuccessfully does his job, and instead glorifies the U.S. Focusing on all the positive aspects this country offers, when we might be the source of the problem.
Maria Full of Grace portrays a young Colombian teenage girl who seeks out a better life in the worst way possible. Maria, being 17, impregnated, and in a loveless relationship, causes her to be desperate for change. For Maria to scrape by in the unstable economy of Colombia, she works in a monotonous job at a labor intensive flower processing plant, cutting thorns off of roses. Yet, being pregnant makes these working conditions difficult. Maria continues to see she needs change, especially after her boss rejected her request to use the restroom. Resulting in her vomiting on the flowers, and then being yelled at by him to clean it up.
Failing to find a positive opportunity for work, Maria’s next job is seemingly much worse in multiple ways. Maria gets offered enough money to hold her over for a long time in Colombia, by becoming a international narcotrafficker, even though it still “yields ve...

... middle of paper ...

... over romanticized, as the U.S government is constantly making it more difficult for immigrants to become citizens, especially those from the global south. Furthermore, immigrants from the global south tend to be in the lowest income bracket, showing Marston’s interpretation in his film to be false.

Works Cited

Davis, Emily S. "The Intimacies of Globalization: Bodies and Borders On-Screen."Camera
Obscura: Feminism, Culture, and Media Studies 21.2 62 (2006): 32-73. Print.

Pobutsky, Aldona B. "Maria Llena Eres De Gracia: Fairy Tale, Drug Culture, and The American
Dream." Hispanofila 160 (2010): 27-41. Print.

Sorrensen, Cynthia. "Maria Full of Grace (Maria, Llena Eres De Gracia)."Journal of Latin
American Geography 4.2 (2005): 120-23. Print.

Maria Full of Grace. By Joshua Marston. Dir. Joshua Marston. Perf. Catalina Sandino Moreno. Fine Line Features, 2004.

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