Review by Bob Ignizio
Despite having his name in the title, infamous Columbian
drug lord Pablo Escobar is not the main character in ESCOBAR: PARADISE LOST. That honor belongs to naïve Canadian surfer
dude Nick Brady (Josh Hutcherson). We first meet Nick in 1991 as Escobar
(Benecio del Toro) is about to turn himself over to the authorities. We don’t
yet know how this clearly in over his head gringo became a part of Escobar’s
organization; we only know that he is being asked to help Escobar hide his
income before his sentence begins, and that doing so will require Nick to commit
murder. Cue the flashback.
According to the onscreen text, Nick arrived in Columbia “a
few years earlier”. Nick, his brother, and his brother’s wife all seem to think
that eighties Columbia is the perfect place to live a beach bum existence,
raise a family, and open a restaurant/surf shop in the jungle adjacent to the
beach, seemingly without checking with anyone in the pretty seaside village
about licensing or possible objections from local thugs. As it turns out, said
local thugs are not pleased with these hippies moving in to their territory
without notice. Luckily Nick falls hooks up with Maria (Claudia Traisac), who
just so happens to be Pablo Escobar’s niece. That takes care of the thug
problem, albeit in a rather violent and permanent matter, but soon creates a
whole world of other problems for Nick.
Nick tries to turn a blind eye to just how scary Maria’s “Uncle
Pablo” really is, which isn’t that hard to do for those in his inner circle of
family. At least as the film presents him, Escobar fancies himself a do-gooder
merely looking to protect his kin, as well as a devout Catholic who, at one
point while praying with his mother, offers his hopes that God will understand
why he had to do some of the bad things he did. But when things get really bad
for Pablo, not even family is safe as he eliminates anyone he perceives as a
threat. Nick realizes he and Maria need to get away, but it may be too late.
Hutcherson is convincingly out to sea, but it’s unclear what
we’re really supposed to take away from Nick’s character arc other than it’s a
bad idea to get involved with someone whose uncle is a murderous international
drug dealer. Traisac is pretty and vibrant as Maria, but like so many movie
girlfriends isn’t a character so much as a plot device necessary to draw Nick
into the sphere of Pablo’s seamy underworld. And despite his limited screen
time, del Toro still makes his Escobar a memorable and compelling figure.
The idea of seeing Escobar through the eyes of an outsider
has potential, but writer/director Andrea Di Stefano’s script ultimately doesn’t
have much to show us from any perspective that we haven’t seen in other “rise
and fall of a drug kingpin” movies. The film spends as much if not more time on
the love story between Nick and Maria, but their relationship still feels rushed
and banal. Ultimately it’s a well made but somewhat schizophrenic film that
tries to be a bit of a historical drama, a bit of a romance, and a bit of an
action movie/thriller, and falls short on all three counts. 2 out of 4 stars.
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