Bisbee '17

Set in Bisbee, Arizona, this film both documents the Bisbee Deportation as well as residents' views today. The town of Bisbee was ripped apart by the deportation, and 100 years later it is still divisive. This movie may not only tell this important story but also, finally, provide the town with some healing.

It was a pleasure to work with the production company 4th Row films and director Robert Greene. I was cast in the re-enactment as one of the mine Bosses (John C. Greenway). Both Mary Ellen and I enjoyed being apart of the filming as well as watching it on the big screen. A great documentary on a conflict that was tucked away at the bottom corner of our state (Arizona). Mary Ellen did a awesome job playing the young man Fernando's Mom.👍🏼

This film was cleverly done thanks to Robert Greene and film crew and all their sponsors to make this happen.

So many emotions erupted by those Bisbee town residents that became actors and made this film feel so alive!

The film makers took an interesting historical incident and in an effort to add "drama" or something ended up with a boring series of meandering shots that left me actually asking the television if we could please get on with the story. It opens with a long shot of a guy standing alone in front of an empty school building first asking some guy to keep everyone quiet and out of the shot, then stands there doing and saying nothing for what seems like forever and the rest proceeds at the same snails pace. When they got to some weird side story about Tombstone, AZ and how they're "Second Amendment City" I finally gave up. Apparently it is possible to make someone stop caring about a story simply through bad self-indulgent film making. Just read the Wikipedia article and you'll get the gist without all the "Indie Film" foolishness.

I would have preferred a little less re-enactment and a little more history. What were the fates of the deportees? Did any deportees return? How many persons were indicted? How many indictments led to trials, and how many trials led to convictions? The interviews with present-day townspeople are interesting, though.