Colombiana

Zoe Saldaña stars as Cataleya Restrepo, a young woman who transforms from a traumatized child into a lethal assassin. After witnessing her parents' murder in Bogota, she flees to Chicago and trains under her uncle Emilio (Cliff Curtis), eventually working as his contract killer. But Cataleya has a personal agenda: she leaves a signature flower at each hit, hoping to draw out the drug lord who killed her family. Directed by Olivier Megaton and produced by Luc Besson, this 2011 action thriller mixes gritty revenge with sleek Euro-style filmmaking. Shot on a $40 million budget, it earned over $71 million worldwide. While critics were mixed, Saldaña's fierce performance and the film's kinetic energy found a solid audience. The movie shares Besson's signature style seen in La Femme Nikita and The Professional.[edit]

Bogotá, 1992. Nine-year-old Cataleya Restrepo watches helplessly as drug lord Don Luis Sandoval's men gun down her parents in their home. Her father, a lawyer who had gathered evidence against Sandoval, manages to press a small key into her hand before dying, urging her to run. The girl escapes through a window, makes her way to the U.S. Embassy, and is sent to Chicago to live with her uncle Emilio, a former revolutionary turned artist.

Fifteen years later, Cataleya has become a ghost. Trained by Emilio, she works as his contract killer, executing high-profile targets with surgical precision. She lives a spartan existence, her only luxury the meticulous planning of her hits. But each kill carries a message: she draws a Cattleya orchid on the body, the same flower as her name. This signature is a taunt aimed directly at Sandoval, who remains entrenched in his cartel. Cataleya is systematically dismantling his organization, one assassination at a time.

Her dual life creates constant friction. Emilio wants her to stay invisible, but her vendetta draws attention. FBI Special Agent James Ross notices the pattern of flower-marked corpses tied to Sandoval's network and begins hunting the mysterious female assassin. Meanwhile, Cataleya tries to hold onto a normal relationship with Danny Delanay, a kind man she met years ago. Their romance offers a glimpse of peace, but her violent reality keeps intruding. As Sandoval's enforcer Marco closes in, and the FBI tightens the net, Cataleya must finally force Sandoval out of hiding for a direct confrontation.[edit]