Educational Media Reviews Online

Amor, mujeres y flores is a 1988 Spanish-language documentary on the negative health effects experienced by workers, often women, in the thriving Colombian export flower industry. It sharply contrasts the natural beauty of these flowers with the serious health problems of the workers, which are attributed to overuse of pesticides banned or restricted in the United States and other industrialized nations. According to one of the workers interviewed for this project, behind each flower is a death.

The director uses first-person testimonials in a successful effort to put a human face on suffering. In each testimonial, the worker describes his or her situation, job duties, and subsequent health issues. Workers often report conditions such as headaches, asthma, sinusitis, rheumatism, eczema, leukemia, blindness, miscarriages, or cancer. The documentary connects these conditions to the excess use of pesticides. These pesticides ensure sterile soil and inhibit weeds and other diseases but also are carcinogenic.

Highlighted in these testimonials and footage are the dire social conditions of the working poor in Colombia that cause young women, some as young as 14, to seek employment in the flower industry despite the health risks. Many women work while pregnant to support themselves and their families, which puts their unborn children at risk.

Marta Rodríguez, one of the directors of this documentary, is closely associated with the Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano, a movement that emerged in the 1960s inspired by the ideology of the Cuban Revolution. The focus of Amor, mujeres y flores on workers’ rights, social justice, and the importance of unionization is in line with this ideological movement. For this reason, Amor, mujeres y flores will be of interest to students of Latin American film, political science, and history.

The portrayal of the situation is, unfortunately, one-sided. The filmmakers do not interview the companies involved nor provide sources for their statistics. Instead, they only provide a voice-over of an unnamed North American businessman in which he describes the beauty of the flowers, the benefits of operating his business in Colombia, and the large profits earned by the company.

Despite its age, this title is recommended for its portrayal of an overlooked social injustice, as an early negative example of globalization, and also for its connection to an important Latin American film movement. Additionally, this reviewer was unable to locate any other documentaries, recent or older, that address this issue. Regrettably, updated information on the current situation does not accompany this video. Educators considering its use in class will want to use it as a starting point for further class research on the topic. Perhaps the only recent video to address the flower industry, at least peripherally, is the motion picture María Full of Grace (María, llena eres de gracia, Colombia/US 2004). This film briefly depicts in fiction the present-day working conditions in the Colombian flower industry but does not directly address pesticide use.

Sound and video quality are good. English-language subtitles are easy to read.

This documentary is recommended for high school students, college students, adult viewers, and the libraries that serve them.