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Border Incident
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Wikipedia article
'Border Incident' is a 1949 film noir featuring Ricardo Montalbn, George Murphy, Howard Da Silva. Directed by Anthony Mann, the MGM production was written by John C. Higgins and George Zuckerman. The film was shot by cinematographer John Alton, who used shadows and lighting effects to involve an audience despite the fact that the film was shot on a low budget..
Premise
The story concerns two agents, one Mexican (PJF) and one American, who are tasked to stop the smuggling of Mexican migrant workers across the border to California. The two agents go undercover, one as a poor migrant.
Cast
* Ricardo Montalbn as Pablo Rodriguez
* George Murphy as Jack Bearnes
* Howard Da Silva as Owen Parkson
* James Mitchell as Juan Garcia
* Arnold Moss as Zopilote
* Alfonso Bedoya as Cuchillo
* Teresa Celli as Maria Garcia
* Charles McGraw as Jeff Amboy
* Jos Torvay as Pocoloco
* John Ridgely as Mr. Neley
* Arthur Hunnicutt as Clayton Nordell
* Sig Ruman as Hugo Wolfgang Ulrich
* Jack Lambert as Chuck
* Otto Waldis as Fritz
Production
The film was among a number of lower budgeted movies produced at MGM under the regime of Dore Schary.
Reception
According to MGM records the film earned $580,000 in the US and Canada and $328,000 overseas resulting in a loss of $194,000.
Critical response
Roger Westcombe compared the film to classic Westerns: "Yet far from a typical Western's sense of freedom, 'Border Incident' shares with [director Mann's previous film noir] 'T-Men' that film's inky, submerged visual quality. These are 'wide' but not 'open' spaces, as Alton's beautifully registered grey-toned but grim visuals make the distant horizons as closed as the American border. The constant presence of vulnerable, innocent peasants adds a piquancy to 'Border Incident', raising the stakes from the destiny of a mere two police agents to that of an entire underclass."[http://www.bighousefilm.com/reviews/border_incident.htm Westcombe, Roger] . Big House Film, review. Last accessed: December 25, 2007.References
Notes
Bibliography
* Harry Tomicek: Das grosse Schwarz. 'Border Incident', von Anthony Mann, Kamera: John Alton (1949). In: Christian Cargnelli, Michael Omasta .(eds.): Schatten. Exil. Europische Emigranten im Film noir. PVS, Vienna 1997, .Buy Border Incident now from Amazon
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