Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Graphic
- seductive
- tense
- bleak
- true crime night
- crime drama marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly found that the film squanders its compelling real-life subject and talented leads on a lurid, familiar biopic.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Virginia Vallejo's relationship with Escobar provides the principal perspective on his rise, crimes, and collapse.
Escobar presents himself as a benefactor and congressional politician while controlling a drug-trafficking empire and targeting opponents.
Virginia is initially drawn to Escobar's charisma and ostentatious success before recognizing the lethal power behind it.
The plot places Escobar's cartel violence within Colombia's political conflict over extradition and American intervention.
Films like Loving Pablo, and why
Escobar: Paradise Lost
shares a biographical crime-drama focus on Pablo Escobar, cartel power, political corruption, and escalating violence
Blow
shares a true-crime biopic structure centered on a charismatic drug lord, criminal empire, and morally dangerous ambition
The Infiltrator
shares a female-centered perspective on organized crime, coercive power, and survival within a violent criminal world
Narcos
shares a lurid, high-stakes portrayal of Colombian cartel violence and the personal cost of proximity to criminal power
Movie Details
- Director
- Fernando León de Aranoa
- Release Date
- 2017-12-14
- Runtime
- 123 min
- Rating
- 6.3 / 10 (1056)
Cast
- Javier Bardem
- Penélope Cruz
- Peter Sarsgaard
- Julieth Restrepo
- Óscar Jaenada
- David Valencia
- Mark Basnight
- Joavany Alvarez
- Matthew Moreno
- David Ojalvo
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- History Vault
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Loving Pablo about?
- A journalist’s passionate affair with Pablo Escobar becomes a fight for survival as his political ambitions and cocaine empire engulf Colombia.
- What is Loving Pablo like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Loving Pablo as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Loving Pablo violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Loving Pablo as graphic.
- What did critics think of Loving Pablo?
- Critics broadly found that the film squanders its compelling real-life subject and talented leads on a lurid, familiar biopic.
- Which films are like Loving Pablo?
- Films with a similar feel include Escobar: Paradise Lost, Blow, The Infiltrator, and Narcos.
- How long is Loving Pablo?
- Loving Pablo runs 123 minutes.
- Where can I watch Loving Pablo?
- In United States, Loving Pablo streams on History Vault.
