A great look behind the story of the Peru 2. I do wish there was a bit more focus on the actual time spent in jail because she seems to be the reason the prison life improved but it's brushed over. We also don't get to hear from Mellisa, which would have added a bit more to the documentary. People saying she's bad or deserves what she gets, as far as I can see, she was young, lured by money and basically a bit stupid. She's living her life now, she's paid her price so let's move on with it.
28 Reviews
Well Made But Questionable Message
gravemaurice-9167316 July 2021
This was a good documentary however like another reviewer I was a bit annoyed by McCollums "poor me - I'm a victim" aura. McCollum was a young girl with extremely questionable ethics who went off to Ibiza with a one-way ticket for a good time and consumption of copious amounts of drugs. She worked as a, er, hostess, got involved with bad people and in an attempt to maintain her drug fuelled goid time girl lifestyle choose to smuggle drugs. Maybe if she'd paid attention in school she might have known where Lima was. I hope she didn't get paid for this.
Interesting, but also a problem
DasGlasperlenspiel26 October 2022
The four-part miniseries follows the story of a British drug courier who is sentenced to a long prison term in Peru. What is the special feature? The protagonist is the attractive young woman Michaella! You see a mixture of original recordings and interviews with the actual stakeholders on the one hand and stuff shot afterwards with actors. In the interview sequences, the mistakes the woman made are admitted honestly and openly, which I noticed positively. However, the fact that a convicted criminal now plays the leading role in a netflix series, and was probably well paid for it, is problematic. Sometimes the impression arises that it was just a kind of self-awareness course. In the best moments, viewers wonder if they might have made similar mistakes when they were 20. Those who are interested in this type of material will not be disappointed.
Hope This Helps Other Girls From Falling Into This Trap
PalmBeachG22 December 2022
I think this is great that this individual decided to tell her story on how she became involved in becoming an Ibiza Drug Mule and imprisoned in a Peru prison. Maybe it will help others to understand how easy it is to fall into a trap. I actually know someone (in this case a guy) that fell into a Mexican trap in the 70s and ended up in a Mexican prison for 7 years while on vacation for something he shouldn't have and this is more common and easy to happen than you think. Once in those places it is nearly impossible to get out. She was amazing how she was able to improve herself in the prison on her own to get released early. The trap is falling for the guy that recruited her in the first place - they always recruit someone innocent and the girl always falls for him and trusts anything he says. That is mistake #1. Sure she makes bad decisions but she was an easily manipulated subject.
Interesting but shallow
paul2001sw-126 July 2021
The story of Michaella McCollum made a lot of tabloid headlines in its day: the tale of a British teenager arrested in Peru for smuggling drugs. In this documentary, she tells us what happened. The presentation is bright and breezy but there's a little less to learn than we might have expected: she was young, she was bullied into a stupid mission, she was arrested, imprisoned, but survived; but we don't learn much we might not have already suspected. A "drug cartel laywer", every inch the cartoon villian, is interviewed to tell us how awful the cartels are; but Michaella was just a fool who didn't know much (indeed, she claims to not have even known she was being sent to Peru until she got on the plane). There's still some interest to the story, but the absence of deeper context is frustrating.
Distracting makeover
sarahjohnson-8831125 October 2022
Good on this woman for owning up to the whole mess and serving her time. Who didn't screw up at 20 or under? Most of us not so dramatically thankfully.
I was surprised it took her a year to figure out that learning Spanish might have been a good thing to do, and I would have been super impressed if she did her court hearing in Spanish.
I can understand the backlash when she returned home to Ireland and the makeover didn't help. For the series, I found the veneers and injected lips just too distracting.
Interesting light viewing, easy binge watching, and an insight into prisons in developing countries.
I was surprised it took her a year to figure out that learning Spanish might have been a good thing to do, and I would have been super impressed if she did her court hearing in Spanish.
I can understand the backlash when she returned home to Ireland and the makeover didn't help. For the series, I found the veneers and injected lips just too distracting.
Interesting light viewing, easy binge watching, and an insight into prisons in developing countries.
Why not
d-3155031 October 2022
Okay, first of; it is always easier to talk about someone Else, than one self, and quite a few comments here, are doing exactly that. (Talking about others)
But, must we just forget that this is a 19 year old irish Girl, who was bored to death in Ireland? Had 9 siblings, and just didnt have much to do there, she was probably losing her mind because of the boredness. Does that justify her trying to smuggle drugs? Absolutely not.
But keeping in mind, she is a Young woman first of all, not even talking that she is irish from the coubtryside, But we still have to give her the benefit of doubt. . People deserve second chances. . And to me this Young woman sounded very honest and trustworthy, she really sounded like she regreted everything even early on. Har this been a 35 year old lady, the story would have been different. :) had this been a guy, the story would have been much much worse. . So yes, the feminine sector of the whole thing, absolutely is there. She was granted freedom not only because she was very sincere and Young, But probably also because she was a Young woman.
Women just go through life easier, more often than men. That is just a fact. . I Can bet you, there are at least 400 europeans who did much less in Peru, who are doing much worse sentences. So in that case, no, i dont like that Netflix is spewing this feminine agenda out there, portraying her as some hero that she survived prison, after she tried to smuggle 11 Kgs and lied afterwards. Even the music was a bit too much, like come ooon. .
But i believed her though, she did do that as it was Said, it is just that Netflix kinda made it Sound like she was the hero in all this.
But, must we just forget that this is a 19 year old irish Girl, who was bored to death in Ireland? Had 9 siblings, and just didnt have much to do there, she was probably losing her mind because of the boredness. Does that justify her trying to smuggle drugs? Absolutely not.
But keeping in mind, she is a Young woman first of all, not even talking that she is irish from the coubtryside, But we still have to give her the benefit of doubt. . People deserve second chances. . And to me this Young woman sounded very honest and trustworthy, she really sounded like she regreted everything even early on. Har this been a 35 year old lady, the story would have been different. :) had this been a guy, the story would have been much much worse. . So yes, the feminine sector of the whole thing, absolutely is there. She was granted freedom not only because she was very sincere and Young, But probably also because she was a Young woman.
Women just go through life easier, more often than men. That is just a fact. . I Can bet you, there are at least 400 europeans who did much less in Peru, who are doing much worse sentences. So in that case, no, i dont like that Netflix is spewing this feminine agenda out there, portraying her as some hero that she survived prison, after she tried to smuggle 11 Kgs and lied afterwards. Even the music was a bit too much, like come ooon. .
But i believed her though, she did do that as it was Said, it is just that Netflix kinda made it Sound like she was the hero in all this.
Interesting
ViperishCarrot13 July 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Watching this it's difficult to feel any sympathy for the protagonist, Michaella McCollum and she certainly shouldn't be allowed to make money from her criminality. The story is told in such a way as to try to garner sympathy and introduce an element of naïvety about her but for me it does the opposite. She comes across as white unintelligent but media savvy. My synopsis is this -
Party girl goes to Ibiza to do drugs, party girl runs out of money to do drugs, party girl transports drugs to get cash injection to buy more drugs. Party girl gets caught, rightfully spends short amount of time in a foreign prison.
Party girl gets released and sells her story to buy more drugs/lip filler/teeth whitening (delete as applicable) because now she is now a media personality.
This documentary shines a light on what has become the norm; don't worry about how your actions affect anyone else, as long as you can have all of the superficial stuff you require to stay relevant in your social media bubble. Shocking that this woman has a platform on which to make herself a celebrity and continue to make money on this.
Party girl goes to Ibiza to do drugs, party girl runs out of money to do drugs, party girl transports drugs to get cash injection to buy more drugs. Party girl gets caught, rightfully spends short amount of time in a foreign prison.
Party girl gets released and sells her story to buy more drugs/lip filler/teeth whitening (delete as applicable) because now she is now a media personality.
This documentary shines a light on what has become the norm; don't worry about how your actions affect anyone else, as long as you can have all of the superficial stuff you require to stay relevant in your social media bubble. Shocking that this woman has a platform on which to make herself a celebrity and continue to make money on this.
solid docudrama that does not glamourise the drugs trade
rugbysharks1 November 2022
Warning: Spoilers
Interesting enough story of the infamous Northern Irish drugs mule. I'd have preferred if it had been longer to examine more of her background growing up in the North, and also her time in Ancon prison in Peru. For example I think she was a hostess in a Belfast nightclub before she went to Ibiza so she would've hardly been a "babe in the woods" when it comes to witnessing the drug scene. However, unlike some of the Calvinistic reviewers here, I think it's fine when ex-convicts make money from their stories. The clue is in the "ex" part. She did the crime and she did her time. Would you people have her live on welfare in a council house for the rest of her days because of what she did? It's not like she murdered or even assaulted anyone. There are actors in Hollywood (like the late Tony. Sirico for example) who came into fame and fortune on the back of being CAREER criminals. McCollum on the other hand did this one foolish & naive thing for a relatively small amount of money. She has matured beyond her years (still only in her 20s) and has a family now too. Give her a break!
It is a sobering documentary that does not glamourise what she did. The consequences of criminal behaviour are fully shown.....cockroaches, prison stabbings and all. It's not as if the documentary abruptly ends when she boarded that plane to Lima.
It is a sobering documentary that does not glamourise what she did. The consequences of criminal behaviour are fully shown.....cockroaches, prison stabbings and all. It's not as if the documentary abruptly ends when she boarded that plane to Lima.
Boring as Hell
VoixDeFilm7 November 2022
OMG. Honestly, this is just horribly done. So many drone shots, panning of scenery, the predictable slow motion shots, dramatic music, all serving a pretty boring depiction of what actually happened. Nothing really builds the desire to care about the main characters. Besides some pictures that prove Michaella used to be a little girl, there just isn't enough background or painting of her family history, to draw any apathy from us at all.
When I think about this whole series, I hate it more and more. The main framework is this (and I know you'll be shocked, but there it is): alcohol-induced decisions lead to consequences and some of those really suck. Of course, they're consequences that she mostly escapes.
When I think about this whole series, I hate it more and more. The main framework is this (and I know you'll be shocked, but there it is): alcohol-induced decisions lead to consequences and some of those really suck. Of course, they're consequences that she mostly escapes.
Redemption Story
laserwiz7731 October 2022
Pure and simple, this is a redemption story. If you didn't do anything STUPID when you were young perhaps you haven't really been living. This lady screwed up big time, realized it, paid the price and has successfully turned her life around. She worked very hard to do these things, including learning a new language and advocating for herself in a difficult situation to gain an early release from prison and then turned around to help others. When I was 17 I rolled my car in a blackout. I haven't had a drink for over 32 years and in the meantime developed medical devices that saved and/or improved the lives of millions of people (literally). I wonder how many of these people believe that everyone deserves a second chance.
Pretty much any banged up abroad episode
haydenbrown-2437418 July 2022
Warning: Spoilers
If you have ever seen banged up abroad the tv show then this is very similar just drawn out longer.
Shes not the sharpest tool in the shed.
Was going to smuggle 1.5 million dollars worth of coke for $5000 pounds.
When they said you are going to Lima from Ibiza she thought it was still in spain even though the plane ride was 12 hours.
Got annoyed they made her do stupid things like a 7 day tour through peru to machu pichu for fun.
They didnt even have anyone with them when they packed there bags full of drugs just 30 packages of jelly and oats, could have decided to quit then.
Had to strap at least one packed to a certain part of the suitcase. "A huge red flag" = set up.
Everyone in these shows is set up to let the real drugs get through.
Still unfortunate but she comes accross and really dumb.
Still i good watch though if your bored.
Shes not the sharpest tool in the shed.
Was going to smuggle 1.5 million dollars worth of coke for $5000 pounds.
When they said you are going to Lima from Ibiza she thought it was still in spain even though the plane ride was 12 hours.
Got annoyed they made her do stupid things like a 7 day tour through peru to machu pichu for fun.
They didnt even have anyone with them when they packed there bags full of drugs just 30 packages of jelly and oats, could have decided to quit then.
Had to strap at least one packed to a certain part of the suitcase. "A huge red flag" = set up.
Everyone in these shows is set up to let the real drugs get through.
Still unfortunate but she comes accross and really dumb.
Still i good watch though if your bored.
Perhaps an intriguing story but a terrible documentary
paul-allaer8 November 2022
As "High" (2021 release from the UK; 4 episodes of about 30 min each) opens, it is "15 August 2013, Lima, Peru" and the voiceover says "this is me, getting arrested for drug smuggling". The "me" is Michaella McCullen, a woman from rural Northern Ireland. After a quick detour to her upbringing, McCullen is on a flight to Ibiza and we are at "43 days to the arrest"... At this point we are 10 min into Episode 1.
Couple of comments: I love true crime, and I love documentaries. Accordingly I am an obvious target audience for releases like "High" and the many true crime documentaries out there. In and of itself, this could be an intriguing story: how does a young woman from rural Northern Ireland end up becoming a drug mule in a matter of just weeks? Alas, this mini-series does not do justice to the underlying premise. Why? Because the mini-series relies far too extensively on "reenactments" rather than actual archive footage. In fact, but for the opening minute or so (when we see footage of the arrest in Lima), the entirety of Episode 1 consists of reenactments and talking heads (including Michaella herself). I[m sorry but that is a big problem for me, and as a result I was flat-out turned off by the end of Episode 2 and I quit, even thought the remainder 3 episodes are only a combine 90 min. Last but not least, this mini-series is NOT titled, as shown here in IMDb, "High: Confessions of an Ibiza Drug Mule". Per the mini-series opening credits, it is simply titled "High", nothing more, nothing less.
"High" premiered in the UK in summer of 2021, and then it starred streaming on Netflix just a few days ago. I really can't recommend this to anyone in good conscience. Of course you don't need to take my word for it, so check it out and draw your own conclusion.
Couple of comments: I love true crime, and I love documentaries. Accordingly I am an obvious target audience for releases like "High" and the many true crime documentaries out there. In and of itself, this could be an intriguing story: how does a young woman from rural Northern Ireland end up becoming a drug mule in a matter of just weeks? Alas, this mini-series does not do justice to the underlying premise. Why? Because the mini-series relies far too extensively on "reenactments" rather than actual archive footage. In fact, but for the opening minute or so (when we see footage of the arrest in Lima), the entirety of Episode 1 consists of reenactments and talking heads (including Michaella herself). I[m sorry but that is a big problem for me, and as a result I was flat-out turned off by the end of Episode 2 and I quit, even thought the remainder 3 episodes are only a combine 90 min. Last but not least, this mini-series is NOT titled, as shown here in IMDb, "High: Confessions of an Ibiza Drug Mule". Per the mini-series opening credits, it is simply titled "High", nothing more, nothing less.
"High" premiered in the UK in summer of 2021, and then it starred streaming on Netflix just a few days ago. I really can't recommend this to anyone in good conscience. Of course you don't need to take my word for it, so check it out and draw your own conclusion.
Excellent in-depth account
user-13-10425016 July 2021
Too bad they didn't let them rot in prison
kefalasgeorge21 December 2022
A typical illiterate young girl ,dime a dozen ,who has a really hard time not including "kind of" in every single sentence ,who uses " youS" ,who has no idea where Lima is or even Peru. She belongs to this generation of irresponsible people and her involvement in this and her pregnancy attest to that . It is really a shame that such people can be released from prison after such a short time ,to go on destroying other people's lives . Such people who have absolutely nothing to offer to themselves or society should be made to rot in prison so that they will not be the reason for the deaths of young people.
Interesting but a bit over played
dhjr-6643614 November 2022
Warning: Spoilers
I guess this is gonna be a spoiler alert but whatever.
This all happened within one month and a one time thing from a girl who was just seeking attention and acceptance, but for the most part, oblivious and naive.
Watching this you automatically get the thought, "how could you be so dumb?!" But being that beautiful and being brought up to be innocent to the world, you can't judge her. But at the same time, you just randomly show up in a different country and have only met this guy once and you're just like, "ok, I guess"
But it is a really interesting perspective on how both guys and girls can be so dumb. That goes for the drug people that hired these m o r o n e s.
This all happened within one month and a one time thing from a girl who was just seeking attention and acceptance, but for the most part, oblivious and naive.
Watching this you automatically get the thought, "how could you be so dumb?!" But being that beautiful and being brought up to be innocent to the world, you can't judge her. But at the same time, you just randomly show up in a different country and have only met this guy once and you're just like, "ok, I guess"
But it is a really interesting perspective on how both guys and girls can be so dumb. That goes for the drug people that hired these m o r o n e s.
Cautionary tale
dierregi21 November 2022
What you learn from this overlong documentary is never to donate money for legal assistance of chicks who claim they were coerced into smuggling drugs.
This sordid tale can be summarized in a couple of paragraphs and yet Netflix made four episodes out of it... Michaella - or whatever her name is - was a Northern Ireland runaway who spent a crazy summer as a "hostess" in Ibiza and was easily convinced by boyfriend Davey to smuggle drugs from Spain.
Drunk and high after a wild night, our heroine leaves Ibiza for Majorca with a large suitcase packed only with a couple of bikinis. In Majorca she learns she actually must fly to Lima with another girl and that doesn't worry her a bit because she doesn't even know where Lima is!
In Peru she's caught at customs with her suitcase filled with her bikinis and 12 kilos of dope. She tells a bunch of lies to the police, such as she was forced at gun point by bad guys to turn into a mule and her story makes headlines back home, where foolish - albeit kind-hearted - people collect money for her defense.
She gets a light sentence of 6 years and spend only 3 in prison where - she tells the audience - she turned into a better person. Not difficult, considering how she started (drug smuggler, lier, etc...). Eventually, she has enough money to get lip filler and a total makeover to gracefully guide the audience through her mistakes and redemption. Let's s rejoice, but most of all remember NOT to donate money...
This sordid tale can be summarized in a couple of paragraphs and yet Netflix made four episodes out of it... Michaella - or whatever her name is - was a Northern Ireland runaway who spent a crazy summer as a "hostess" in Ibiza and was easily convinced by boyfriend Davey to smuggle drugs from Spain.
Drunk and high after a wild night, our heroine leaves Ibiza for Majorca with a large suitcase packed only with a couple of bikinis. In Majorca she learns she actually must fly to Lima with another girl and that doesn't worry her a bit because she doesn't even know where Lima is!
In Peru she's caught at customs with her suitcase filled with her bikinis and 12 kilos of dope. She tells a bunch of lies to the police, such as she was forced at gun point by bad guys to turn into a mule and her story makes headlines back home, where foolish - albeit kind-hearted - people collect money for her defense.
She gets a light sentence of 6 years and spend only 3 in prison where - she tells the audience - she turned into a better person. Not difficult, considering how she started (drug smuggler, lier, etc...). Eventually, she has enough money to get lip filler and a total makeover to gracefully guide the audience through her mistakes and redemption. Let's s rejoice, but most of all remember NOT to donate money...
Girls is unbelievably stupid
zeka757 February 2023
How is it possible to be so stupid? Kind of, like, kind of, how, like?
I'm tired of watching movies where people like this idiot are presented like some kind of victims. She is not a victim, she is a drug trafficker and she should rot in prison for many years. She committed a crime, because she wanted fast money. She knew exactly what she was doing.
The excuse is "i was on lsd and they used me" well, why were you on lsd? Nobody used you. You are just stupid and you should not be free.
She doesn't know where Peru is, she thinks it's in Spain?! Seriously.. it's okay to make movies like this just so we can see what idiotic creatures live amongst us, just please don't make them look like victims.
I'm tired of watching movies where people like this idiot are presented like some kind of victims. She is not a victim, she is a drug trafficker and she should rot in prison for many years. She committed a crime, because she wanted fast money. She knew exactly what she was doing.
The excuse is "i was on lsd and they used me" well, why were you on lsd? Nobody used you. You are just stupid and you should not be free.
She doesn't know where Peru is, she thinks it's in Spain?! Seriously.. it's okay to make movies like this just so we can see what idiotic creatures live amongst us, just please don't make them look like victims.
Something to really acknowledge
micheler9626 August 2023
Warning: Spoilers
What I appreciated about this story is a young girl, seduced into this situation. So, the demand isn't being addressed, instead they go after the bottom of the barrel of drug muling. This woman applied herself and grew up while in prison. I see a naive, sheltered girl, go out, get wild like so many others and get caught up in what the males in this industry do, use naive young women to do a dirty, dirty job. Sad. Wanting to really hate someone without really understanding how the whole situation is, lacks emotional intellect. Bravo to her learning, growing and becoming a better person for herself.
Annoying privileged girl, possibly hiding criminal details
Innacana31 October 2022
The so called victim girl Michaella McCollum (not the actor) is so annoying. During her entire narration, all she could say is:
Her each sentence consisted of the above. I think other interviewees spoke better English than her.
All I could understand from this documentary is that Michaella was not really a victim, but rather a wh*te privileged girl, in Ibiza, Peru, prison, by media, people who helped her financially. Even after providing false testimony and lying to the Peruvian court. She could have become an informant and help capturing the drug cartel, but all this self-obsessed girl could think of was about herself ! The story she illustrated was not consistent and may not be true, other interviewees expressed the same. There could be more to the story or she may have been hiding her criminal details, from the court as well as Netflix.
- Like ....
- I'm like ....
- I was like ....
- I felt, like ....
- I mean, like ...
- It's kind of, like ....
- I don't know, like ....
- Kind of ....
- .... just kind of ....
- Sort of ....
- You know ....
Her each sentence consisted of the above. I think other interviewees spoke better English than her.
All I could understand from this documentary is that Michaella was not really a victim, but rather a wh*te privileged girl, in Ibiza, Peru, prison, by media, people who helped her financially. Even after providing false testimony and lying to the Peruvian court. She could have become an informant and help capturing the drug cartel, but all this self-obsessed girl could think of was about herself ! The story she illustrated was not consistent and may not be true, other interviewees expressed the same. There could be more to the story or she may have been hiding her criminal details, from the court as well as Netflix.
Netflix shouldn't spend its production budget on enriching this drug criminal
Erik_Surewaard23 October 2022
Warning: Spoilers
You probably also know the documentaries like "Banged Up Abroad" from the National Geographic Channel. Well, this Netflix show is something similar, only stretched in a "show" of 2 hours total. Why it has been decided to split it up in 4 episodes - instead of a single 2 hour feature - is beyond me. There is so much filler material, that they could have easily edited it down to only 1.5 hours, the normal length of a feature film.
Watching this "show", I immediately got the impression that it was about someone taken right out of Jersey Shore. This including filler lips and botox face. The main person - whom is shown constantly as the one being interviewed - looks to me as someone full of lies and deception. And this is also confirmed the more you see of this show.
Under the false pretense that she was forced - under gunpoint - to traffic drugs, allowed her family to gather many funds from ordinary people that felt sorry for her. These funds were off course spent to liberate her.
In the end she got away with a sentence of only just over 6 years. A sentence that was rediculously low seen the large quantity of drugs she carried. Looking at similar cases in Peru, she should have received 15 years. And her explanation that she helped the authorities is just utter nonsense. Had she done that, she would have been murdered by the cartel. Again it seem to be all lies of her.
Off course you then start wondering whether the english department of foreign affairs had a role in getting her off so light. This by pressuring the peruvian justice system. We need to understand that everyone still believed her when she stated she was forced to carry those drugs.
After being sentenced to a rediculous low prison term, it was only then that the real circumstances came out. Off course she wasn't forced to carry the drugs.
So, she was just an ordinary criminal that was out to make money from carrying drugs. And after she was caught, she also betrayed a lot of people by telling lies about her being forced. Lies that allowed her to collect a lot of money under false pretenses. A crime by itself in my opinion.
And now after the facts, she is enriching herself by telling her story and how bad it was. After googling her, you see her showing of in an expensive Audi. She clearly seems to be profiting from her crime through selling her story.
Since I am a big fan of the "true" crime genre - I am still giving this show 5.1 stars. This since there is some entertainment value in. But honestly, I would have preferred it if Netflix would have spent its production budget on something else than further enriching this criminal lady.
Watching this "show", I immediately got the impression that it was about someone taken right out of Jersey Shore. This including filler lips and botox face. The main person - whom is shown constantly as the one being interviewed - looks to me as someone full of lies and deception. And this is also confirmed the more you see of this show.
Under the false pretense that she was forced - under gunpoint - to traffic drugs, allowed her family to gather many funds from ordinary people that felt sorry for her. These funds were off course spent to liberate her.
In the end she got away with a sentence of only just over 6 years. A sentence that was rediculously low seen the large quantity of drugs she carried. Looking at similar cases in Peru, she should have received 15 years. And her explanation that she helped the authorities is just utter nonsense. Had she done that, she would have been murdered by the cartel. Again it seem to be all lies of her.
Off course you then start wondering whether the english department of foreign affairs had a role in getting her off so light. This by pressuring the peruvian justice system. We need to understand that everyone still believed her when she stated she was forced to carry those drugs.
After being sentenced to a rediculous low prison term, it was only then that the real circumstances came out. Off course she wasn't forced to carry the drugs.
So, she was just an ordinary criminal that was out to make money from carrying drugs. And after she was caught, she also betrayed a lot of people by telling lies about her being forced. Lies that allowed her to collect a lot of money under false pretenses. A crime by itself in my opinion.
And now after the facts, she is enriching herself by telling her story and how bad it was. After googling her, you see her showing of in an expensive Audi. She clearly seems to be profiting from her crime through selling her story.
Since I am a big fan of the "true" crime genre - I am still giving this show 5.1 stars. This since there is some entertainment value in. But honestly, I would have preferred it if Netflix would have spent its production budget on something else than further enriching this criminal lady.
Netflix wants us to care about the plight of this drug smuggler...
EddieSixx25 October 2022
...and I don't. She's an immature, entitled child whose voice makes her sounder even dumber than she likely is, which is in itself shocking. I had no clue what this series was about, but saw it was in the top ten, so I watched the first episode and five minutes of the second one before being too disgusted to continue. It is clear she knew EXACTLY what she was doing, what kind of people were involved, and why she was doing it. For money and to get connected with drug dealing vermin in Spain and Peru. I have no respect for her, because she has no respect for herself or the countless people she looked down upon who work for a living and act like decent human beings. This is not enlightening, and the people at Netflix allowing this idiot to make money off of her own stupidity appauls me.
This show is trash and so is she. Time to rethink my Netflix subscription. I can't support this kind of garbage or the people making it.
This show is trash and so is she. Time to rethink my Netflix subscription. I can't support this kind of garbage or the people making it.
michaella mccollum
swimonna9 December 2022
Wow!!! This was the funniest and most moving documentary I've ever seen. It's amazing that she learned from her own mistakes and became a mother!!! A very strong woman. Instead of being depressed in prison, she sought a way out, she said. What a smart woman. I loved this woman's self-confidence. She told her own life story as if she were telling a story, and she was sincere. I was never bored while watching it. It deserves all 10 stars. Change is in your hands!!! Although some people are angry with her, she has changed now. Not the old Michaella McCollum. She learned from her mistakes. Don't let your future personality be affected by the past, Everyone makes mistakes...
The idiot women documentary genre on Netflix continues
DarknessVisible2024 October 2022
Hot on the trail of 'Tinder Swindler' and 'Bad Vegan', and possibly others I've missed, this is another documentary on Netflix that makes me absolutely mortified for my own gender.
Stupid - not just ignorant, but truly, truly stupid - women falling into obvious traps set by men that prey on stupid women. Women that go on to pay a high price for their stupidity and gullibility.
Almost painful to watch.
Somewhat entertaining if you can imagine it as being fiction. Less so when you remember that these are real women that were so painfully dumb.
And that heavy Irish accent and speech pattern where all the words blend together - I could not understand ANYTHING this broad and her friend were saying without reading the subtitles - I mean not a word. It's like another language entirely. Ugh.
Stupid - not just ignorant, but truly, truly stupid - women falling into obvious traps set by men that prey on stupid women. Women that go on to pay a high price for their stupidity and gullibility.
Almost painful to watch.
Somewhat entertaining if you can imagine it as being fiction. Less so when you remember that these are real women that were so painfully dumb.
And that heavy Irish accent and speech pattern where all the words blend together - I could not understand ANYTHING this broad and her friend were saying without reading the subtitles - I mean not a word. It's like another language entirely. Ugh.
Odd perspective
damncensorship28 November 2022
The fact that the subject of the documentary narrates this series, on top of her filmed interview, makes it feel like she's way too "in on the production" to warrant any kind of trust in the filmmakers.
First person accounts, in general, are fine but this felt very much like a self-fabricated redemption story. For the larger lesson here to be "smuggling drugs along international lines is bad, but I sure did learn a thing or two.". Is terribly reductive of ....well..everything
Otherwise the story is somewhat interesting. Like, how to not get roped into smuggling cocaine from some continent you forgot existed. Very odd perspective.
First person accounts, in general, are fine but this felt very much like a self-fabricated redemption story. For the larger lesson here to be "smuggling drugs along international lines is bad, but I sure did learn a thing or two.". Is terribly reductive of ....well..everything
Otherwise the story is somewhat interesting. Like, how to not get roped into smuggling cocaine from some continent you forgot existed. Very odd perspective.
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