Border Incident (1949)

I love this movie so much

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

The Plot:To penetrate a gang exploiting illegal Mexican farmworkers smuggled into California (and leaving no live witnesses), Mexican federal agent Pablo Rodriguez poses as an ignorant bracero, while his American counterpart Jack Bearnes works from outside. Soon, both are in deadly danger from the ringleader, sinister rancher Owen Parkson, and find night on the farm to be full of shadowy film-noir menace.Dated with absurd stereotyped characters that had to be hokey even back when this film was made in 1949.If you're Mexican you are either a tirelessly god fearing good person who works hard for a few dollars that may be stolen from you crossing the border, or you're thieving scum who will kill your fellow man.The acting is as idiotic and thin as the script. There's actually a woman who feels the braceros hands before they are approved to go to ensure the hands a rough. OMG! It's so dumb.This surely was a grade C movie when it came out.

Anthony Mann directed this still-timely drama that stars Ricardo Montalban as Mexican agent Pablo Rodriguez, who teams up with American agent Jack Bearnes(played by George Murphy) to tackle the problem of illegal Mexican Immigrant smuggling into California, which has seen many of them mysteriously murdered. Rancher Owen Parkson(played by Howard Da Silva) is chief suspect as the ringleader. Pablo goes undercover from the inside as an immigrant, while Jack investigates from the outside. The case will prove quite dangerous, more than either man realized... Fine drama with solid acting and direction, and an incisive script that wouldn't need much changing to work today, sadly.

Illegal immigration is an issue this country is still trying to get a handle on. We say we don't like it, but we sure like the idea of illegals coming to work here for poverty wages. But now as in 1949 there will be people looking to exploit the situation in Mexico and in America and films like Border Incident will strike way too close to our patriotic hearts.Border Incident tells the story of an American Immigration Officer and a Mexican Federale. Both George Murphy and Ricardo Montalban go undercover to smoke out an organized people smuggling ring, Murphy as a convict with illegal stolen immigration work forms and Montalban as a migrant worker. Working in border towns on both sides of the Mexican-California border, Murphy and Montalban work in a non-stop atmosphere of intrigue and deceit. They are working separately, but know each other is on the case and the problem is there really is no one either can trust. Anthony Mann does a beautiful job in creating the tension involved in such an operation as director.Noir films were not usually what MGM put out, but in the case of Border Incident, they put out a real good one.

Actors of this quality deserve a first-rate film -- and they got it in "Border Incident." Howard Da Silva could do just about anything. His Benjamin Franklin in "1776" was outstanding, and his bad guy in this movie was so different that a viewer can only marvel and be a fan.George Murphy was another incredibly versatile actor, able to play light comedy, to sing and dance, and to play a doomed federal agent in "Border Incident." His scene in the field, as he lies wounded and trying to crawl away from the farm machine, is scary and touching.Ricardo Montalban was another more-than-capable actor, a handsome man, a prolific performer in many fields and roles.Some of the excellent character actors here include Arthur Hunnicutt, Charles McGraw, Sig Ruman, and the always fascinating Alfonso "We don't need no stinkin' badges" Bedoya.As so many other people have already mentioned, the problem with which "Border Incident" deals is still a problem.Poverty drives desperate people across a border desperately seeking work, desperately trying to feed their families.Naturally there are perils, from the death-dealing desert to heartless government agents to even more heartless thugs willing to exploit and even rob them."Border Incident" comes across almost as a documentary, and its realism just adds to the drama. This is definitely one to watch.