The Curse of La Llorona is a supernatural horror movie set to be released April 19, 2019. It's about the story of The Weeping Woman (La Llorona), a ghost based on Latin American folklore, who was said to have drowned her children in the river during a blind rage and has since been searching for them, who will never be found. The Weeping Woman apparently latches herself onto other lost children, wanting to claim them as her own.
But how many of you know the actual story behind it?
According to Latin American folklore (the story changes depending on demographic), La Llorona is based on a woman named Maria who lived in poverty. And although she was penniless she was known specifically for her beauty. One day she meets a rich man who is taken with her beauty and vows to make her his wife, despite the disapproval of his father for wanting to marry someone with nothing to offer financially. Nevertheless, Maria and her family were thrilled and when she married, her new husband built a new house for them somewhere within the village.
But it wasn't exactly a match made in heaven. Maria's husband was often away from home, and although she bore him two sons, he stopped paying as much attention to her. Eventually, he returned home with a new, younger woman to bid his family farewell. In a blind rage, Maria takes her children and drowns them in the river without much thought to what she was doing. She finally snapped out of her blinded haze and searched the river for her sons but it was too late, as the river had already swept them away. Mysteriously, she was found dead on the river bank days later.
Caught between her arrival at the gates of heaven and the land of the living, she cannot gain entry until she is able to claim her children, so it is said she continuously goes in search of them, often heard weeping for the sons she will never find. Legend has it that if you ever hear her crying, run away immediately, for if you encounter her it will bring about misfortune and death. Parents would often use the story of La Llorona to scare children into being home before dark. She would often wear either a black or white gown and would drown the children she kidnapped late at night or during the evenings.
Sometimes she could be heard crying "¡Ay, mis hijos!" which means "Oh, my sons!"
La Llorona is similar to various other folktales but one thing I do know is that sometimes folklore can be based on something that really happened. Whether this is one of those stories, will probably never be known. There's been tons of stories about her in pop culture but I'm the most anxious to see how this new movie will turn out regarding this legend.
