The Border

Director: Tony Richardson Tony Richardson

Overview

"Tom Jones director Tony Richardson might seem a curious choice to direct the contemporary western The Border, but he does his best to emulate Sam Peckinpah. Jack Nicholson stars as an El Paso border guard, saddled with avaricious wife Valerie Perrine. Hoping to stifle her nagging about money matters, Nicholson begins accepting payoffs to allow Mexican aliens to cross the border without interference. This leads to a relationship with a young Mexican mother Elpidia Carillo. Harvey Keitel and Warren Oates lend strong support to this atmospheric tale."

Product Details

Release Date:	05/11/2004
UPC:	0025192063824
Original Release:	1982
Rating:	R
Source:	STUDIO DISTRIBUTION SERVS LLC
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	1:49:00
Sales rank:	41,749

Special Features

Closed Caption; [None specified]

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Jack Nicholson	Charlie
Harvey Keitel	Cat
Valerie Perrine	Marcy
Warren Oates	Red
Elpidia Carrillo	Maria
Shannon Wilcox	Savannah
Manuel Viescas	Juan
Jeff Morris	J.J.
Mike Gomez	Manuel
Dirk Blocker	Beef
Lonny Chapman	Andy
Stacey Pickren	Hooker
Floyd Levine	Lou
James Jeter	Frank
Alan Fudge	Hawker
William Russ	Jimbo
Gary Grubbs	Honk
Gary Sexton	Slim
Billy Silva	George
Juan Ramirez	Angel Dominguez
William McLaughlin	Donny
David Beecroft	Kevin
Lupe Ontiveros	Madam in Whorehouse
James Gavin	Helicopter Pilot

Technical Credits

Deric Washburn

Walon Green

Dave Freeman

Tony Richardson	Director
Deric Washburn	Screenwriter
Walon Green	Screenwriter
Edgar Bronfman	Producer
Neil Hartley	Executive Producer
Dave Freeman	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

Director Tony Richardson delves into the complex symbiosis between border guards and illegal aliens on the U.S./Mexican border in a film that's often engrossing, but finally too sprawling and diffuse to be compelling. The film takes a somewhat detached view of both guards and aliens, in laying out an ethnography of tastelessness and obsessive materialism among the Border Patrol that fuels the shady deals that exploit the desperate Mexicans. Jack Nicholson, whose characters have often ridiculed the kind of minor official he plays here, is surprisingly straight as the weary, cynical guard who finally tires of Harvey Keitel's venal boss, and the conflict between them gives the film what energy it has. Less successful is the sketchy character of the Mexican woman played by Elpidia Carillo, who supposedly inspires Nicholson's redemption. Despite the film's limited impact, the documentary aspects of this situation, which seems to have changed little in the intervening years, remains of interest. Valerie Perrine and Warren Oates are typically excellent, and the sweeping camera work of Vilmos Zsigmond and Ric Waite is also worth noting.