Santa Santita

Santa Santita
This movie is about a young girl, Malen, who takes her mother’s spot as a prayer woman. Malen begins the story as a troubled young woman who refuses to live the lifestyle that her mother wishes of her. While trying to sell her products, Malen meets a young man, a taxi driver, who she eventually runs away with. This young man also has issues from his past that he must deal with, but unlike Malen he is unable to run away from it. Malen is forced back home when she hears of her mother’s death, she is also forced to continue her mother’s work at the ………Church. At this church is a priest who is reassigned to the same church that Malen begins working at. The priest is reassigned to this specific church because he is a recovering alcoholic. The job that Malen's mother had was as a prayer woman, in this occupation people with problems would seek out individuals to pray for them, and hopefully ease their problems. After Malen’s mother dies, she resumes her mother’s job, at first many of the other women look down on her, because of her past. But as faith would have it, Malen is blessed with the touch of God’s Grace. She is able to heal everyone that she prays for. With the success that Malen is greeted with, she faces very big struggles with her bf/ ex-bf, the taxi driver. He reveals to her that he has a son that is very ill, although he is aware of Malen’s abilities to heal; he refuses for his son to be healed by her. Not until his son actually dies that he asks for Malen’s help, but it was too late. Malen’s gift is for healing, not bringing people back to life. Everyone is intertwined in the story because of their belief or non-belief in God. Malen believes in God’s work, while the priest although a servant of God, he is unable to control himself, and lastly the taxi driver who has lost faith in everything especially with the death of his son. In the end each individual miraculously reclaims God as their savior.
From my perspective the movie deals with life and death, the circle of life, and how everything will lead you to peace within. When I mention life and death I refer to the act of becoming re-born. Literally and figuratively, in this story you see the daughter of a prayer woman who becomes like her mother, not by choice but by chance. It was just by chance that Malen is the individual who was born of her mother. You cannot choose who and what your children will become but only guide them to be successful. The circle of life comes into play when, only after the mother has passed away does Malen realize the wrongs of her past. Also it is not until the death of the taxi driver’s son that he must face reality and get on with his life. The priest is reborn just like Jesus, when he realized and reemerged from his alcoholic past and into his bright future as the priest he is today. Without peace from within, each individual would have to battle their fears and demons of their past to overcome the odds. Each was able to become enlightened with the spirit of God, and not until then did they truly realize their potentials.
Personally I don’t think that paying someone to pray for your benefits would work, such as getting a job. You can’t pray for a job unless you work or try hard to get that job. In class, one of our classmates Vien made the comment that in her religion you cannot pray for something to happen but instead you, the individual must make it happen. I believe this is true, what you put into it is what you will get. However, I believe in praying for ones safety and asking for protection or a speedy recovery for those who are sick or injured. I’d love to believe that all you would need to do is pray for what you want and you will get it, but I know that this is all wishful thinking. Shit happens and you must deal with it, you can pray for help in dealing with your problems but you cannot pray to God that he/ she takes the problem away for you.
I thought that the movie was average, and very idealistic. This movie probably gives hope to those who are in need of guidance or reassurance. I think this movie is idealistic because everyone is saved by God or somehow touched by God that they lose all their faults. In real-life not everyone becomes saints. In some instances the movie tries to portray this by allowing Malen’s mother to die, the taxi driver’s son to die, and the priest to be an alcoholic. But in real-life once an alcoholic always and alcoholic, also Malen would probably still be in denial, and the taxi driver probably would be a man-whore or a pimp preying on innocent women. Possibly I could be looking at this whole movie from a pessimistic standpoint but as of right now I truly believe that shit happens and with that you must deal with it and try to make the most out of your shitty situation, or else fail and live life in despair.

James Funtanilla