Review by Justin Bateman
Stars Stephanie Sigman, Irene Azuela, Miguel Couturier, Gabriel Heads, Noe Hernandez, James Russo, Jose Yenque
Cinematography by Mátyás Erdély
Written by Gerardo Naranjo & Mauricio Katz
Certification UK 15 | US R
Runtime 113 minutes
Directed by Gerardo Naranjo
Laura Guerrero (Sigman) is 23 and lives in Mexico with her young brother and father. Together they eke out a living selling clothes. So when Laura's friend Suzu invites her to an open audition for a local beauty pageant she jumps at the chance. But within hours hope turns to despair when a group of gunmen open fire in a nightclub and Laura gets embroiled in the gang's criminal activities.
Every year, thousands of people in Mexico die as a direct or indirect result of the drug trafficking trade. And unlike the vast majority of film and TV dramatisations of such activities, this is far from a glamorous world, something Miss Bala shows from the start.
The gang whose biding she does is a well-organised unit but there are no flash cars, indeed no evidence of wealth whatsoever and a real team ethic. "We're fearless!" they assure each other before each increasingly dangerous stage of the operation. Their leader Lino (Hernandez) is an unassuming man with a quiet confidence who rarely raises his voice but does what he has to do to get things done.
Precisely what things are rarely explained to either Laura or the viewer which makes for an atmospheric and unsettling ride. There are long periods of sitting around and waiting punctuated by bouts of sudden and extreme violence making them all the more of a shock when they do arrive.
Sigman is excellent as the permanently petrified Laura and as we see almost the entire film from her perspective she pretty much carries it. Hernandez is also good, understated as the gang leader and quietly terrifying in his own way. But while the realism shines through the drama is sporadic and the pace drops in the middle third. Overall though, Miss Bala is an engrossing not to mention sobering tale of crime and how it affects normal people down Mexico way.