LOVING PABLO Is A Familiar Story Told From A New Perspective

There have been many films about drug lord Pablo Escobar, in both English and Spanish. There have even been films loosely based on his life (Scarface comes to mind). The new film, Loving Pablo, chronicles the same story except through the eyes of his news anchor celebrity lover, a perspective and story that has never been tackled by Hollywood.

The story begins the day Pablo Escobar (Javier Bardem) meets Colombia’s most famous journalist, Virginia Vallejo (Penélope Cruz), and follows their life events until she escapes his clutches with the help of the DEA. Cast members also includes Peter Sarsgaard, Julieth Restrepo, and David Valencia.

In 2007, real life Vallejo published Amando a Pablo, odiando a Escobar, in which she describes her romantic relationship with Pablo Escobar, among other things. Vallejo’s memoir became the number one bestselling Spanish-language book in both Colombia and the United States. This film is based on the story in this book.

It was interesting seeing the real-life married couple of Bardem and Cruz portray these characters. There are a few gratuitously violent moments that could make most movie-goers squirm (a whipped dog scene is pretty brutal), but the rest of the film plays out like a well-written fatal attraction thriller. We get to see Vallejo go from high society parties to being scared for her life, living in a literal nightmare.

Some of the editing choices, I felt, could have been different. To be specific, I felt that certain beats were too long and affected pacing. That being said, the story, visuals, and acting in the film were top notch. Quality filmmaking from a quality team.

The film will be in theaters & On-Demand/Digital on October 5, 2018.

CONFIRMED THEATERS: 
Los Angeles – AMC Sunset 5
New York – City Cinemas Village Easy Cinema 7
New York – AMC Jersey Gardens 20
Bakersfield – Reading Cinemas Valley Plaza 6
Chicago – AMC Rosemont 18
Dallas – AMC Grapevine Mills 30
Dallas – Arcangelo Cinemaerica Le Gran Plaza 8
Denver – Sonora Entertainment Cinema Latino de Aurora 8
Houston – Arcangelo Cineamerica Houston 6
Houston – Cinema Latino Pasadena 6
Miami – MDC’s Tower Theatre
Phoenix – Sonora Entertainment Sonora Cinemas 9
San Francisco – Reading Cinemas Rohnert Park Cinemas 16
Tampa – AMC Veterans Expressway Dolby Cinemas 24 IMAX
Fort Myers / Naples – Brille Cinemas Prado Stadium 12