The Curse of La Llorona (2019)

The film The Curse of La Llorona (2019), directed by Michael Chaves, is based on the Latin American legend of La Llorona. Set in 1673 Mexico, a family is playing in a field when the youngest son gives his mother a cherished necklace. However, their peaceful day takes a dark turn when the mother begins violently drowning her children in a nearby stream. Over 300 years later, in 1973 Los Angeles, caseworker Anna is investigating the truancy of Patricia Alvarez’s two children. Upon arriving at Patricia’s house for a welfare check, she finds the children locked behind a door. Despite being warned to stay away from the door by Patricia, Anna persists and is attacked before police intervene and take Patricia away. Carlos and Tomas instruct Anna to keep them locked inside for their own protection, but she ignores their warnings and brings them to a child-services shelter – unknowingly putting them in grave danger. It’s there that Tomas begins sleepwalking and leads both boys to encounter a mysterious woman in a white dress who turns out to be La Llorona herself.

Upon discovering the lifeless bodies of the boys in the river, Anna is summoned to the scene. Accompanied by her own children, Chris and Sam, they remain in the car as she conducts her investigation. While there, they hear Patricia’s piercing screams accusing Anna of being responsible for her sons’ demise. Patricia claims that she had attempted to ward off the wrath of ‘La Llorona’, blaming Anna for taking her children. Curiosity getting the best of him, Chris ventures out of the car and encounters La Llorona herself, who viciously grips his wrist leaving behind scorching marks. As she follows him back to the car, La Llorona disappears once Anna arrives and they quickly escape. The following day, Sam also falls victim to La Llorona’s grasp leaving identical burns on his skin. During an interview with Patricia, she provides an alibi for the time of her sons’ death but also reveals that in a fit of loathing towards Anna, she begged La Llorona to bring back her children while sacrificing Anna’s instead.