646f9e108c After 27 bodies are discovered in a collapsed tunnel in Tijuana, a man tries to unravel the mystery before becoming the next victim. American human rights activist James Rhodes, arrives in Tijuana to help oversee union elections at a factory owned by a US company. He soon discovers that things have been happening around the town with people disappearing or being shot in a tunnel across the border in the States. He suspects it has something to do with the upcoming election. Along with local police detective Claudio Castillo, he starts investigating the case. I liked this movie for several reasons. First, I thought it portrayed the &quot;maliquidoras&quot; (companies that move their plants and factories south of the Rio Grande) quite realistically. Second, I believe that the drug cartels deserve every bit of bad publicity they can get. Third, I also believe that the corruption of government officials in Mexico should be exposed. Of course, I realize that this was a film that was totally fictitious. But things very similar to this actually happen when greed takes over and people are treated like &quot;widgets&quot; and nothing more. And I believe people need to be made aware of this. But despite the politics involved, I also liked the film due to the way the movie played out. Jeff Daniels (playing International Rights Watch advocate &quot;James Rhodes&quot;) did pretty well in conveying the &quot;crusader&quot; spirit that is necessary for the job at hand. Additionally, I liked the cynicism of &quot;Douglas Draper&quot; (James Spader) and the cautious attitude of the Mexican investigator named &quot;Claudio Castillo&quot; (Clifton Collins Jr). All three characters seemed to fit quite well. And then there is the attractive American State Department agent named &quot;Emily Thompson&quot; (Portia de Rossi) whose presence brightened the screenwell. As farthe plot is concerned, I thought it kept my attention. At least for the most part. However, I seriously doubt that any drug cartel is going to be that concerned about its public image like this movie tried to depict. After all, they&#39;re thugs and hired killers and it&#39;s what they do. So shooting it out with the Mexican police to defend their reputation was a bit far-fetched. Likewise, the ending was a bit too convenient. But other than that I enjoyed this movie. Spotted this DVD on eBay and bought it on the cheap from someone in the UK. Watched it last night and all I can say is what a great surprise! This is a really well done political thriller in the tradition of Traffic. Daniels, Spader, de Rossi, and especially Clifton Collins do some terrific acting. The direction is tight, the story is interesting, the political angle is provocative, the Mexican sets are authentic. All in all a very good film for what was obviously a smallish budget. <br/><br/>Why this movie isn&#39;t on video in the US (was it ever shown in a theater?) is beyond me. Especially considering all the crap that IS on video. Does anyone know what happened to this movie?
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346 weeks ago