Fronteira da Violência

Although this is not a great film it is a lot better than its reputation. Jack Nicholson is excellent and Harvey Keitel is very good. The beautiful and beguiling Mexican actress, Elpidia Carrillo, handles a limited role with enough artistry to make me wonder why I never heard of her before. Turns out she does have a healthy list of credits both internationally and in the US.

The direction by Tony Richardson, who had his heyday in the sixties with films as varied as The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962), Tom Jones (1963), and The Loved One (1965), all adapted from novels, is at times inspired and artistic, and at other times as ordinary as dishwater. I don't think he was able to make up his mind while directing this film about whether he wanted win an award at Cannes or Venice or to just sell some tickets. As it turns out he did neither as well as he might have. Nonetheless as a snapshot of poor Mexican immigrants (and would-be immigrants) as they clash with the border patrol culture twenty-some years ago The Border is definitely worth a look. Particularly vivid is the depiction of the absurdities and hypocrisies among the coyotes, the "wets," the border patrol rank-and-file, the law and the realities of life along both sides of the thin strip separating the promised land from the third world.

Nicholson plays Charlie Smith, a border patrol cop with a trailer trash wife (Valerie Perrine) who yearns to move up to the luxury of duplex living. In particular she wants to move in next door to her high school girlfriend Savannah (Shannon Wilcox) who is married to the "Cat" (Harvey Keitel). Charlie Smith is a bit of an innocent who was satisfied with his trailer home and his sexy, loving, but not overly sharp, wife Mary. When they do pick up and move to Texas he runs headlong into the corrupt lifestyle of the Cat and the cruel realities of his job which consists of arresting illegal immigrants and sending them back to Mexico. Meanwhile Mary isn't just sitting home twiddling her thumbs. Instead she is out buying water beds and dinette sets, overstuffed chairs and sofas, and other knickknacks that put a strain on the couple's budget which leads Charlie into temptation. But when taking kickbacks turns to murder, Charlie draws the line in the sand (literally as it happens) and he and the Cat have a rather rude falling out.

Meanwhile Charles spots Carrillo as the lovely Maria with babe in arms and a little brother at her side. Predictably the system cruelly exploits her, bringing Charlie to her rescue.

I think the striking contrast between Charlie's air-headed Mary and the desperate and needy Maria needed to be further explored. As it was played Charlie is just a good joe doing a good deed or two when in fact we know he is much more involved than that. I think the movie would have been improved by making him choose between the two women as he had to make the moral choice between going with the Cat's corruption or going against him.

See this for Jack Nicholson, one of the great actors of our time, who brings subtlety and veracity to a role that could have been ordinary, while giving us only a hint of the commanding and irreverent style that he would adopt in later years.

(Note: Over 500 of my movie reviews are now available in my book "Cut to the Chaise Lounge or I Can't Believe I Swallowed the Remote!" Get it at Amazon!)

Good, low-key, absorbing drama. One thing about Jack Nicholson, he seems to instinctively know when to effectively play a subdued character. His reading and performance of this character were perfect in this movie.

He plays an increasingly unhappy, and troubled Border patrolman seemingly powerless to do anything about the brutality and corruption he sees around him. Saddled with a shrill, materialistic wife, Nicholson portrays the desperation of a man trying to make a difference, and do the right thing.

Not an award-winner, but an effective, interesting character study.

As a teacher of English in Germany you always look for worthy material on the Latino immigration influx . This film is a valuable opener for such a series of lessons. It reveals the impact of the problem. It makes use of outstanding performances: Nicholson and Keitel are as cool as ever. Pellerine is the American woman. Her friends are that, too. The mafia ring consisting of policemen and coyotes is shown realistically. Violence is explicit but not overdone. Landscape and Latino immigrants are depicted in all their shades and lights. The strong American individual wins in the end - again. The good side beats the bad side. The Ry Cooder soundtrack is more than worth listening to. It is authentically reconstructed as always. Teachers: Pick up that video or DVD and use the movie for your lessons on the US Latino problem!

Jack Nicholson's transition from brilliant character actor to self-parodic superstar happened sometime in the 1980s. 'The Border' is closer to his best 1970s work ('Five Easy Pieces', 'The Last Detail', 'The King Of Marvin Gardens', 'One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest') than to most of his subsequent output. Two of his best performances in recent years have been in movies directed by Sean Penn ('The Crossing Guard' and 'The Pledge'), and 'The Border' reminds me a lot of those. I wonder if Penn is a fan? The director Tony Richardson made his name with British "kitchen sink" dramas and he brings to this Peckinpah-esque material an empathy for "little people" rarely seen in American movies of the 1980s and '90s. Nicholson gives a superb performance, one of his very best. The two women in his life are played by Valerie Perrine and Elpidia Carrillo. The former is best remembered for her appearance in 'Superman' but has acting chops she has rarely been asked to use (see also 'Lenny' alongside Dustin Hoffman). The latter is best known for appearing in the Arnie action classic 'Predator'. Both of them are surprisingly good in this movie. Harvey Keitel is even better. This is one of his "lost" movies - see also 'Fingers', 'Deathwatch' and 'Copkiller' - and seeing him act alongside Nicholson is a real treat. Add to that one of the final roles by the legendary Warren Oates, who had co-starred with Nicholson fifteen years earlier in Monte Hellman's cult western 'The Shooting', and 'The Border' is essential viewing for film buffs. I think the movie has a few flaws but they are easily overlooked, and repeated viewings reveal its true worth. 'The Border' is a real sleeper, and recommended to fans of intelligent, character based drama.

Jack Nicholson does solid work in the role of Charlie Smith, a border patrol officer who moves from California to Texas. Saddled with a well meaning but materialistic wife, Marcy (Valerie Perrine), he realizes that his pocketbook can't keep up with her dreams, so he yields to corruption. This is also encouraged by his new neighbor / partner "Cat" (Harvey Keitel). Soon Charlie is taking pity on young mother Maria (Elpidia Carrillo). When her baby is stolen for the purpose of being sold on the black market, he gets involved in her plight.

All of the actors here deliver rather under rated performances. With Nicholson, there's no theatricality, no eccentricity, just a good, straightforward, impassioned portrayal. Perrine plays the wife in such a way that you can't really hate her. Keitel is great as always as the shady partner, as is the sadly short lived Warren Oates, near the end of his life and career, as Charlies' new boss. Carrillo is lovely and extremely engaging, and one might wish that she'd had more opportunities in American film over the years. (Most people likely know her as the sole female character in "Predator".) There's a fair bunch of recognizable actors in supporting and bit parts: Shannon Wilcox, Jeff Morris, Dirk Blocker, Lonny Chapman, William Russ, Gary Grubbs, etc.

The story, written by Deric Washburn, Walon Green, and David Freeman, is not a great one, but it is entertaining and involving enough to keep ones' attention. Vivid on location shooting is one asset, the sad depiction of the reality of dirt poor Mexicans is another. You can understand why some of these people want to see if their fortunes in the U.S. will be any better. It also benefits from having a main character who's not a squeaky clean, Dudley Do Right type, but is still a basically decent person who will NOT cross certain lines. Viewers will love the expansive widescreen photography and the lovely score by Ry Cooder.

At a time when the issues of border policing and illegal aliens are very much on peoples' minds, this film does remain relevant.

Seven out of 10.