Colombians Upset Over Zoe Saldana's Violent New Film

By Michael Lopez

If you delve a bit into the new movie Colombiana, you can see why some Colombians might be a bit peeved. For one thing, the character of "Colombiana" is played by Zoe Saldana, who is of Puerto Rican and Dominican descent. But beyond that, many locals believe that the film portrays their home turf in a negative light.

For years, Hollywood has associated Colombia with drugs and violence. Whether it was cocaine lords from Scarface or all those glamorized Pablo Escobar biopics, none of the recent films about the country have helped boost tourism.

And it looks like Colombiana may continue that trend. Based around a female assassin from Bogota, it's supposedly got a ton of gun battles and some ruthless Colombian villains. The movie has stirred up so much negative buzz that an anti-Colombiana fan page has popped up on the social networks.

Using the hashtag #ColombiaIsBeautiful, a group of concerned citizens have been working to change the negative depictions of their country. Carlos Macías, president of the organization PorColombia, also spoke out on the issue.

"We are not happy with Sony Pictures cashing in on our already tarnished reputation," he said. "Anyone can highlight positive or negative stereotypes, we only ask that you do it within context, not just randomly for your benefit while denigrating others."

Macías has asked Sony, which distributes the film, to donate a portion of Colombiana's profits to various charities throughout his country.

Do you think Colombians are portrayed negatively in movies? Sound off in the comments or @MTV3.

Tags Blogger: Michael Lopez, Chisme, Colombia, Colombiana, Movies & CineMás, Zoe Saldana