This apparently was the pilot movie for the short-lived series "The Man and the City". This was the time period when some big-name movie actors were agreeing to star in TV shows--James Stewart, Henry Fonda and Anthony Quinn. I never watched the show with Mr. Stewart, found the one with Mr. Fonda drab, and loved this one with Anthony Quinn.
Mr. Quinn is the mayor of a city in New Mexico. (The film was shot in Albuquerque.) He's running for re-election, dealing with an environmentalist bomber, trying to help Native Americans handle a priest who refuses to understand their ways, trying to understand angry college kids, and always trying to help the average person in his city. The movie rapidly moves forward for the most part, the scenery is very southwestern, and the soundtrack is absolutely beautiful.
Anthony Quinn is quite good and quite believable in this movie, as he was in the TV show. He's no bleeding heart, but does have intense compassion, as the son of Mexican parents who came across the boarder to build a new life in the United States. He yells at times, but often regrets doing so. His one son died in his 20s, his wife lives and teaches in Pennsylvania. His character Mayor Thomas J. Alcala was truly an interesting one, and it's fortunate this movie led to at least 15 episodes being made, before it was cancelled.
