Known as “The King of Cocaine” and was considered as the wealthiest criminal in history, Pablo Escobar has left a dark legacy in the history. With an estimated known net worth of $30 billion by the early 1990s (which is equivalent to about $56 billion as of 2017) through his drug business, he was one of the richest men in the world in his prime.
His life has been portrayed in different media, from books, to movies and television series. One of which is the best-selling memoir of the Colombian author, journalist and Escobar’s former lover Virginia Vallejo entitled “Amando a Pablo, odiando a Escobar” (Loving Pablo, Hating Escobar) which has been adapted into a movie by Spanish director Fernando León de Aranoa.
“Loving Pablo”, also known as “Escobar: Loving Pablo”, stars Academy Award winners Penélope Cruz as Virginia Vallejo and Javier Bardem as the infamous Pablo Escobar. The crime drama film depicts the rise and fall of Escobar, and offers a closer and deeper look into his life as a husband, a father and a lover. It also stars Peter Sarsgaard, Julieth Restrepo, David Valencia as Santos, David Ojalvo and Giselle Da Silva
Columbia, 1981. Virginia Vallejo (Penélope Cruz), one of the country’s most famous journalist and TV news anchorwoman is invited to an exclusive VIP party in the ranch of Pablo Escobar (Javier Bardem), a nouveau riche as a lot of people would call him – a low-born man who gained money and power with drug trafficking together with his friends, turning them in the new generation of rich men of the country. Seduced by his charisma, Virginia starts a passionate love affair with Escobar despite him being a married man.
Along the way, Escobar becomes famous in his projects to improve the lives of the low-born people of Medellín (Colombia’s capital) and raising a politician carrier in Colombia’s Congress, even earning him a title as their Robinhood. But soon, Virginia discovers Escobar’s real world: an empire of crime in Colombia. He started spreading his drug in the United States, catching the attention of DEA’s agent Shepard, who starts digging deeper, looking for a way to stop him.
Soon, Escobar starts a bloody war in the country to eliminate all his enemies, destroying anything on his path, unleashing his thirst for blood and his ambition to rule everything, as Virginia’s life descends into chaos.
This new take on Escobar’s life story offers us a deeper and more intimate look at his life. Taken from Virginia Vallejo’s perspective, the film tries to humanize a character that the whole world has seen as a monster. It tries to show the human side of Escobar and makes him a sympathetic character despite his criminal business. He helps the poor citizens of his country because he used to be one of them and he knows exactly the hardships that they are going through.
The film also depicts him as a loving husband and father to his family. At one point, he is shown lecturing his son not to take drugs (despite the fact that he’s running a business on drugs) because he wanted his son to have a clean life unlike his.
But most importantly, the film depicts him as her lover. With Vallejo’s perspective, we get to see their romantic affair up close. At first, it looks like a girl’s ultimate fantasy: it’s like “The Great Gatsby” on drugs. It puts a bit of color in the grim and dark world of Escobar, as he lavishes Vallejo with gifts, from expensive pieces of jewelry to overflowing stash of cash stuck in her suitcase.
There’s a lot of fun in watching these two people in love, enjoying the few remaining happy days of their love affair. Then, the film shift gears with it’s dark, second half as Escobar stars his war against his enemies.
This is where the film gets brutal and bloody. Its unapologetic in-your-face depiction of violence in its second half is the direct opposite of its colorful first half. There’s a lot of scenes of people getting shot in the head, exploding guts and spraying blood everywhere. The depiction of these crimes is shown in its full glory, with dead bodies piled up everywhere.
At times, it looks too realistic that it mirrors the savagery happening all over our own country today. The haunting images felt like they were taken straight out of the headlines on extra-judicial killings in the Philippines today.
The film works so well, mainly because of the stellar performances of the cast, particularly the two leads. Javier Bardem truly transformed into Pablo Escobar and really he looks like the real person. With the help of the amazing prosthetics, Javier Bardem gives life to the infamous man with his enormous dedication to his role. From the way he talks and moves, everything’s just flawless.
But it is Penelope Cruz who really stood out in this movie with her bravura portrayal of Virginia Vallejo. Her performance was outstanding, and I just can’t take my eyes off her from start to finish. Her eyes can easily pull out so many emotions in just a snap. In one of the film’s most intense moments (and probably my favorite), she cries in terror as armed men try to break a bulletproof glass to get inside the pawnshop where she’s cornered. You can really feel the terror in her eyes in this scene which adds up to the intensity of the moment.
Through a gripping story and powerful performances, “Loving Pablo” reveals to us the other side of the man who became Escobar in a highly entertaining fashion like never before.
RATING: 5/5
