Queen of the South (film)

Queen of the South is a Hollywood movie based on the 2002 novel by Arturo Pérez-Reverte. The movie is directed by Jonathan Jakubowicz and stars Eva Mendes, Josh Hartnett and Ben Kingsley. The film is expected to be released in 2011.

Background

In 2002 Spanish journalist turned novelist Arturo Pérez-Reverte released his book ‘La Reina del Sur’, ‘The Queen of the South’ when translated into English. It is this publication that has led to a Hollywood cinematisation starring Eva Mendes in the lead role. The movie will be released as ‘Queen of the South’, without ‘The’ in the title. Along with Mendes in the starring roles are Josh Hartnett and Sir Ben Kingsley.

Plot and setting

The story takes place in multiple transatlantic locations – Mexico, Morocco and Spain. The plot centres around narcotics trafficking and drugs cartels.

Production difficulties

The film production has not been without issues. Filming was scheduled to take place in Sinaloa in Mexico’s North West. However, following security concerns, director Jonathan Jakubowicz was reported in Variety in 2009 as saying,

"We wanted to shoot in the city of Culiacan in Sinaloa, northern Mexico, the epicentre of the [...] wars, but it just wasn't possible. The safety of my family and my team comes first, and making this movie put us all at risk, not only in Mexico but in the U.S."