Queens on the Run (2023): Queens on the Run is a fun, fast-paced comedy film that has just been released on Netflix. The Mexican film is about four housewives who plan to complete a checklist of wild adventures from their teen years—industry heavyweights Paola Nunez, Martha Higareda, and Alejandra Ambrosi star in the central roles.
Despite being on the lighter side of things, Queens on the Run has a rich subtext of themes like feminism and the taboo of female aging in society. Netflix has really hit the goldmine with foreign content in the recent past with films like Infiesta, The Mirage, and Below Zero.
The makers have put in great effort to elevate their work into something more meaningful for the viewers. We break down Queens on the Run for you in this piece. This ending explainer will go over all the important plot points and moments that will help you connect the dots. We are hopeful you like it!
Queens on the Run (2023) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
Patricia, Marilù, Famela, and Estrella are four friends. Except for the free-spirited and eccentric Estrella, all the others have settled down with regular family life. And, except for Patricia, the other three have known each other since high school. The four of them have reached a stage in their lives where they feel the need to rejuvenate their sense of belonging.
One night, Estrella mentions that they should complete their to-do list from their teenage days and plan a road trip. Marilu is initially hesitant. But when her husband Jose forgets their marriage anniversary, she goes all in. The road trip turns out to be full of uncertainties and twists. Even though they had set to find themselves, they must be united and deal with a raging human trafficker and weapons dealer who meets them on their path.
What was the beef between Famela and Gavilan? How did the women end up on the smoker bus?
On their road trip, the women’s path collided with that of El Gavilan. Since the start, we had been hearing in the background that he was a dangerous arms dealer and human trafficker, whom the police had been looking everywhere. They are desperate to catch him. However, he seems to evade their grasp each time. The woman got a flat tire and asked oncoming cars for help. None of them stopped except Gavilan’s car. His handyman, Tuerto, fixed the car for them but soon showed his true colors. They asked the women to sit on the ground as they ransacked their car.
Gavilan found them too old for his flesh trade, but Tuerto was able to get his hands on Famela’s mother’s urn, which looked expensive. Famela made it abundantly plain that Gavilan would be pursued wherever he went if he took the urn. The criminal took his chances and went off with the urn. Famela soon caught up to him, driving like a maniac, and tried to run him off the road. Gavilan got serious when she started shooting at him with her gun and dealt the final blow to their car.
It spun around and was dangerously tipped on the edge of the valley. The women were able to get out safely – so did Kentucky, Paty’s pet chicken – but the car rolled down and was destroyed. That is how they ended up on the smoker bus, which took the story in a completely new direction.
What was the subject of tension between Estrella and Marilu?
The bus that the women got on was filled with traveling hippies. Although the marijuana they smoked was palatable for the women, they had no idea that the hippies had fed them hallucinatory mushrooms when they stopped for the night. That sent them into a trance, and we get into the most surreal, absurdist, and humorous part of the film. Each of them initially experiences their own set of visions. Famela saw her dead mother in the skin of her husband Ramiro.
She also saw her “eggs” being ready to give her a child. But in that state of trance, some ugly truths about their past also came out. Estrella inadvertently accepted to delete emails that Anotionio sent to Marilu. Antonio Posadas Cervantes broke Marilu’s heart in the past, and the two couldn’t continue their pursuit of each other after he ghosted her. But that was not the truth.
Estrella knew Marilu’s password and deleted the emails to protect Marilu. Estrella defends her actions by saying that Antonio was cheating on Marilu and even flirted with Estrella. He was not the right person for her, and she was better of with Jose.
Who was Lola, and what was her mission?
Lola was someone the women picked up on their road trip. She requested to be dropped off at Veracruz, and they noticed she was a single female traveling alone. The women’s maternal instincts would not allow them to abandon her. So they picked her up. Lola bravely saves the life of Estrella at a gas station when the other three women inadvertently shoot off Famela’s gun, which they did not know she had. It turned out later that Lola was actually an undercover cop. We see her talking to her colleagues on the phone, saying that the woman she was with did not suspect anything.
It was imperative that Lola’s cover be maintained so that she could finally nab Gavilan. She had been infiltrating his organization for a long time. Her only chance to get Gavilan was when he would show up at the club. He was a clever operator and rarely showed up in public. That is why she was pretending to be someone who supplied girls for Gavilan’s flesh trade in order to win his trust and fulfill her mission.
Why did Lola draft the women to pole dance at the club?
The girls that Lola asked to recruit for her caught a bad case of food poisoning. It was because of the tamales that Estrella had bought at the gas station. The women, too, had a bad experience after having the tamales. The Godfather, the person who was second in charge to Gavilan at his club El Jack, said that if the girls cannot be arranged, Gavilan would not show up. The women showed up at the club that very instant, giving Lola a way out. Famela wanted her mother’s ashes back, and her friends supported her mission by agreeing to do pole dancing and create a distraction for Gavilan and his men.
The show had to have gone on since this was the only chance the police could nab Gavilan. The women used make-up and other cosmetic prosthetics to hide their identities and make sure that Gavilan stays at the club until the backup arrives. Famela was very desperate to get back the ashes as well, and that played a part.
Queens on the Run (2023) Movie Ending, Explained:
The ending of Queens on the Run had several layers that we will peel back one by one. After the girls did a great job as the pole dancers, which was also on their to-do list, they took Gavilan into a private room. They cuffed him and demanded that he give them back the urn. While Estrella and Marilu resolved their issues, Lola kept Gavilan’s other henchmen distracted. But they soon caught on to the plan and brought Lola as a hostage to get Gavilan back. Once again, the women were forced to be hostages to Gavilan’s goons.
Unfortunately for them, Estrella had matched with Roberto Martinez, the cop that the women met twice while on the road trip – first when they were overspeeding and secondly when they were on the bus – on Bumble. They were texting back and forth, and Estrella had cleverly given him the location and an update on what was happening. A few moments later, Martinez and the other backup officers broke into the club, and a fight ensued. The women did not have too much of a part to play, although Famela and Paty put up a great fight.
Famela was able to get the urn due to Marilu’s bravery and confrontation with Tuerto, Gavilan’s right-hand man. Paty learned that she could survive on her own. Lola and Martinez finally arrested Gavilan. The husbands and families also gathered in Cancun and planned a surprise for the women in Antonio’s bar, where the women went for closure. The final scene showed a spoof where the women went as themselves. Paty had written her first book since discovering Esteban. It was titled “Queens on the Run,” and Netflix had picked up the book to be made into a film.
What did the road trip mean individually to each of the “Queens”?
The real underlying meaning of the film comes from the women’s journey of self-discovery. Each of them filled a certain gap they had in their lives that prevented them from becoming their best version. Marilu finally gathered up the courage to confront Jose about her unhappiness and asked him to be an equal partner in reviving the marriage. She also overcame her lack of closure on Antonio, stating that it was her responsibility to focus on her life.
Famela found herself being too hasty and controlling. She wanted things to be done at her speed and in the manner she wanted. As a result, Ramiro was rushed, and their marriage was less satisfying. But she recognized what needed to be altered and implemented it successfully. Estrella yearns to be with Martinez despite having previously stated that she would die alone. It was a wake-up call that having a partner isn’t as horrible as she thinks.
Finally, Patricia discovered independence while on the trip. She navigated all the obstacles on her own and finally had the courage to divorce Esteban for infidelity, something she should have done a long time ago. She also became a writer and was able to survive on her own.
![The Protector Review [2005]: An Adrenaline-Fuelled & Action-Packed Muay Thai Mayhem](https://www.highonfilms.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/tom-yum-goong-screenshot-1-768x515.jpg)
![Lockwood and Co. [2023] Netflix Season 1: Review, Recap, and Ending Explained – What is “The Problem?”](https://www.highonfilms.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Lockwood-768x432.jpeg)
