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10/07/04
The Gatekeeper (2002)
50 %
Reviews Counted: 20 Fresh: 10 Rotten:10 Average Rating: 5/10
Runtime: 1 hr 43 mins
Synopsis: For border guard Adam Fields (John Carlos Frey), preventing Mexican immigrants from crossing over from Tijuana to the San Diego is a personal mission. He sees the potential illegal aliens as a scourge that could potential strip America of both its resources and its identity. His... [More]
Genre: Dramas
Starring: John Carlos Frey, Michelle Agnew, Anne Betancourt, Joel Brooks
Reviews
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
The film would be destined for limited interest even if it had a good script, which it didn't.
04/23/04
The movie never rises above mediocrity and at times, devolves into amateurish histrionics.
04/08/04
While his instincts as a director could use some sharpening, Frey's performance and script, brought to life by a solid supporting cast, are both uncommonly smart.
04/02/04
Though the film is far from polished, the force of its significance to Mr. Frey, as well as the urgency of its political message, give it some genuine impact.
04/01/04
Top Critic
The truly hellish portrayal of the workers' post-crossing indentured servitude in a meth lab makes up for a sluggish opening act.
03/30/04
Suffers from a condition that afflicts most 'message' movies -- heavy-handed preachiness.
03/19/04
This deeply personal work steadily grows more powerful and eloquent, creating a tragic vision of the plight of illegal aliens that transcends its melodramatic elements.
03/18/04
Top Critic
This earnest, shoestring indie that makes use of some sharp location shooting and sympathetic performances to rise above its often awkward staging and writing.
03/18/04
A commendable effort that draws attention to a largely invisible problem.
03/17/04
It's a movie you want to like, but its sometimes laughably bad execution makes that difficult.
10/31/03
To [Frey] the border isn't just a backdrop, it's a leading lady. So if he's cast her in what feels like a very one-dimensional, made-for-TV movie, well, at least she's finally getting some of the attention she deserves.
10/10/03
A very personal and heartfelt film, if one that shows the strains of its low budget and strident desire to tell an Important Story.
09/06/03
Propaganda with its heart in the right place is still propaganda, and seldom easy to watch.
08/07/03
Frey the moralizer is the problem. It's clear from reading a synopsis of the film that Frey's pro-immigration, but some of the narrative techniques he uses to push his point are too blatant as devices
08/06/03
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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