To watch Teresa Mendoza (Alice Braga) over five seasons of USA Network’s “Queen of the South” is to examine femininity both within the narco culture and within the Latino community.
The show has looked at human trafficking, sex work, and rape within the confines of the cocaine business, but also cast an eye towards the culture of misogyny that often boxes women in to be nothing more than compliant, happy wives.
Teresa, as Braga herself describes her, is a survivor: A naïve girl transformed into the boss she was always meant to be.Braga has created fantastic characters, from her role as Angelica in the 2002 feature “City of God” to her most recent work in HBO’s “We Are Who We Are.” But “Queen of the South” was not only Braga’s first foray into television, it was also her first time leading a television series.
Unlike a feature,
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