Illegal Woman, through a single-person narrative, follows the immigrant lawyer, Fernando Vila journey on finding out the truth about his client, Zita Krasniqi who hanged herself in her detention cell. Zita was going to leave prostitution and restart a normal life with her boyfriend Bakary. Then, why all of a sudden, she killed herself? Fernando couldn’t figure out the truth first, not until he started digging out.
Who killed Zita Krasniqi?
Fernando checked Zita’s dead body in a mortuary. The body was swollen, showing signs of physical abuse. A member of “Stop CIE’s group” Fatima Jamed told Fernando about the cruel treatment against the immigrants inside the CIE detention centers. Inside these camps, they were mercilessly beaten, used for prostitution, and abstained from medical attention. Most of the deaths, which were labeled as suicides, were victims of institutional racism.
Zita not only was used as a prostitute but she was also an eye witness against a policeman named Oriol Cadenas who killed her boyfriend, Bakary by pushing him on the road. To shut the witness, Oriol staged Zita’s murder.
Was Fernando able to save Juliet?
When Oriol found out that his new mistress Juliet, was Zita’s friend, he quickly tries to get rid of her. Behind Fernando’s back, he sends her to the detention camp from where she was being illegally deported. However, at the brink of a moment, Fernando and Fatima stopped the plane and saved Juliet.
Later, helps her to leave for London and also finds her a job and an apartment to live a normal life.
Did Fernando stop CIE?
Saving Juliet gave Fernando a sense of fulfillment. After the death of his wife, he thought, it’s the only reason he could breathe for. Later, he decides to put the murderers of Zita behind bars.
A witness named Mercy Okafor testified against CIE’s director Enric Millar and his policeman friend, Oriol Cadenas. She used to arrange sex parties for them, and also had video footage proving the same.
Fernando believed he had an upper hand in the case, but later that night he was shot by Oriol. The case went haywire and charges against CIE were dropped. Policemen Oriol who was accused of Fernando’s attempted murder proved a solid alibi, and thus, chances of his dismal seemed thin.
Fernando failed to stop CIE legally.
‘Illegal Woman’ Ending Explained
The law failed a lawyer, he had little faith left in the system. Following his dead wife’s last words, Fernando joined the “Stop CIE’s group” protest on the streets.
In the end, a symbolic gesture could be noticed, where Fatima, the leader of the group was wearing Zita’s stole. It gave new hope to Fernando, as Zita was the reason for whom he waged the war against the system. At this moment, he didn’t hesitate, he didn’t hold back and charged against the policeman with ferocity, portraying a massive transformation in his character. The journey changed an underdog and for good.
In the last 10 minutes of the film, real interviews of immigrants who faced adversities in the detention camps are shown. Their stories are alarming and one couldn’t hold back their tears, listening to horrors caused by one human upon another. Depiction of such brutality makes the film a hard-hitting affair.
Read More – ‘Illegal Woman’ Summary & Analysis
Illegal Woman is a 2020 Crime Drama film directed by Ramon Térmens.
