I was not expecting this. After just finishing this movie, tears still in my eyes, I'm surprised I'm even writing about it. The movie hardly belongs to be categorized as a horror movie - but if it weren't I might have missed out on it. This story, the history, and the truth in this movie reach far beyond something of a goofy "fantasy" or "jump scare" horror. It is too real to belong here. This is an absolute must see. It won't scare you in the ways you might be ready for. But instead - the truth behind this story is what is truly terrifying, moving and heart wrenching. The movie centers around a group of 5 children who can't possibly be older than 10. And some younger. They are all orphans because of the continuous war on drugs, cartel violence, human trafficking, and homicides in Mexico. Over 160,000 people are dead since 2006 and over 53,000 are missing. There are no numbers for children. They are unaccounted for and left to fend for themselves. The writers and the characters of the movie use make-believe stories or "fairytales" to escape the harsh realities they are forced to live through. They have to believe that they are fearless, strong warriors, like tigers. Our main character, Estrella, is introduced after coming home after her school was shot up by gangs. She returns home to no mother sadly and is left alone initially. During the school shooting, Estrella's teacher had given her 3 broken pieces of chalk and tells her that they are "3 wishes". Estrella uses her first wish to bring her mother back, but unfortunately it doesn't work the way she would imagine it. She starts to see and hear her mother's ghost giving her confusing and cryptic messages that she doesn't understand. And of course, this would mean her mother is dead. The antagonist of the story is the cartel gang called 'Huascas' who are hand in hand with the government. Even the police force is too corrupt to provide any help to anyone. This is when she leaves her house and finds a gang of four orphans to join. Although apprehensive at first, they do decide to let her in - under condition. She has to prove she is valuable, strong and not a "weak girl". None of them are safe, as Huascas has been running around the city murdering women and kidnapping young boys. They have to kill the gang themselves or else they won't survive. But they're just kids. The children that act in this movie are absolutely incredible. Not only is this story far too mature for anyone their age, but the script does not censor any sort of violence towards children at all. They are forced to act as adults to survive and avenge for the death of their families. Both in the movie and as actors. There is no performance that doesn't stand out. The filming is absolutely beautiful. The script is brilliant. In the abandoned cities there are belongings scattered everywhere - and they almost look like art. They are pleasing to the eye but behind each stuffed animal, dress or piece of furniture is an a story untold about an individual who they used to belong to. It is incredibly poetic and metaphorical allowing the story to be carried beyond what meets the eye. There's a reason Stephen King and Guillermo del Toro are praising this film as one of their new favourites. I also will. You probably will too.
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