# Prayers for the Stolen

Prayers for the Stolen (Spanish: Noche de fuego, lit. 'Night of Fire') is a 2021 Mexican drama film directed and written by Tatiana Huezo, which adapts Jennifer Clement's novel Prayers for the Stolen.

## Plot

Three girls in San Miguel, Jalisco come of age in a rural village that is dominated by the drug trade and human trafficking.The movie opens with the mother digging a hole for the little girl. We then see a boy working in a quarry. He doesn't look very happy. The people of the village are looking for a phone call in the hills of the village to ask their relatives for money. Ana calls her father but gets no answer. On her way home, Ana sees a woman crying in despair. The woman tells her to go home. Ana sees a scorpion on the ceiling and falls asleep. The next day starts with a school scene in which one of the students says "the scorpion has a stinger to protect it from its enemies". The next scene returns to the people working in the quarry and there is a huge explosion.
When her mother sees Ana wearing lipstick, she gets very angry and threatens her. Her mother takes Ana to the hairdresser. Here she cuts her hair like a man. Ana then goes to the house of her friend Juana, who is rumored to have been kidnapped, and looks out the window. The parents listen to the teacher. She reports that the cartels are demanding immediate payment.
The movie makes a time jump and goes to about 5-6 years later. Ana is moved by what the teacher tells her and dreams of changing the existing order. Then the cartels come to get Ana. But Ana immediately hides. The movie closes with a travel scene.

## Cast

* Mayra Batalla as Rita.
* Alejandra Camacho as Paula (teen).
* Marya Membreño as Ana (teen).
* Ana Cristina Ordóñez González as Ana (child).
* Memo Villegas as Leonardo.
* Norma Pablo as Luz.
* Giselle Barrera Sánchez as María (teen).
* Blanca Itzel Pérez as María (child).
* Julián Guzmán Girón as Margarito (teen).
* David Illescas as the teacher.
* Eileen Yañez as Concha.
* Camila Gaal as Paula (child).
* Olivia Lagunas as Zulma.
* Teresa Sánchez as Helena.
* Andrés Chavero Medina as Joel.
* Gabriela Núñez as Artemia.
* José Estrada as Margarito (child).
* Daniela Arroio as the Doctor.

## Release

In June 2021, the film was selected to compete in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival. At Cannes, it won a Special Mention in the Un Certain Regard section.
The film was theatrically released in Mexico on 16 September 2021. In October 2021, it was disclosed to be the Mexican entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards. Ultimately, it was not nominated. It began streaming on Netflix on 17 November 2021.

## Reception
### Critical response

Prayers for the Stolen has an approval rating of 96% on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 56 reviews, and an average rating of 7.9/10. The website's critical consensus states: "As absorbing as it is harrowing, Prayers for the Stolen observes life under the shadow of systemic violence with startling clarity". Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 83 out of 100, based on 14 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

### Awards and nominations

| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result |
| Cannes Film Festival | 17 July 2021 | Un Certain Regard | Tatiana Huezo | Nominated |
| Cannes Film Festival | 17 July 2021 | Un Certain Regard - Special Mention | Tatiana Huezo | Won |
| San Sebastián International Film Festival | 25 September 2021 | Horizontes Latinos | Prayers for the Stolen | Won |
| San Sebastián International Film Festival | 25 September 2021 | RTVE Otra Mirada Award | Prayers for the Stolen | Won |
| Forqué Awards | 11 December 2021 | Best Latin-American Film | Prayers for the Stolen | Won |
| Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards | 18 December 2021 | Next Generation Award | Tatiana Huezo | Won |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival | 6 January 2022 | Young Cineastes Award | Tatiana Huezo | Nominated |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival | 6 January 2022 | FIPRESCI Prize for Best International Feature Film | Prayers for the Stolen | Won |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival | 6 January 2022 | Best Ibero-American Film | Prayers for the Stolen | Won |
| Independent Spirit Awards | 6 March 2022 | Best International Film | Prayers for the Stolen | Nominated |
| Directors Guild of America Awards | 12 March 2022 | Outstanding First-Time Feature Film Director | Tatiana Huezo | Nominated |
| Satellite Awards | 2 April 2022 | Best Foreign Language Film | Prayers for the Stolen | Nominated |
| Platino Awards | 1 May 2022 | Best Ibero-American Film | Prayers for the Stolen | Nominated |
| Platino Awards | 1 May 2022 | Best Director | Tatiana Huezo | Nominated |
| Platino Awards | 1 May 2022 | Best Supporting Actress | Cristina Ordóñez González | Nominated |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Picture | Prayers for the Stolen | Won |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Director | Tatiana Huezo | Nominated |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Actress | Cristina Ordóñez González | Nominated |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Supporting Actor | Memo Villegas | Nominated |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Supporting Actress | Eileen Yáñez | Nominated |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Supporting Actress | Mayra Batalla | Won |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Supporting Actress | Norma Pablo | Nominated |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Breakthrough Performance | Alejandra Camacho | Nominated |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Breakthrough Performance | Giselle Barrera | Nominated |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Adapted Screenplay | Tatiana Huezo | Won |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Cinematography | Dariela Ludlow | Won |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Original Score | Leonardo Heiblum and Jacobo Lieberman | Nominated |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Editing | Yibrán Asuad | Nominated |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Costume Design | Úrsula Schneider | Nominated |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Art Design | Oscar Tello | Nominated |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Makeup | Roberto Ortiz and Ana Robles | Won |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Visual Effects | Miguel de Hoyos | Nominated |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Special Effects | Ricardo Arvizu Jr. | Won |
| Ariel Awards | 11 October 2022 | Best Sound | Lena Esquenazi, Federico G. Jordan and Paulo Gama | Won |
| Goya Awards | 11 February 2023 | Best Ibero-American Film | Prayers for the Stolen | Nominated |