In the end, Lily Marlene gets the very last word, and that is what should remain with us long after the credits stop scrolling. As was the case with "Judgement at Nuremburg", our final impression of a very important film lies with her remarkable image. In that instance, she sits in silence as the call from Judge Dan Haywood goes unanswered, and there is a world of significance in that stillness. In this case, she observes the dead body of an old acquaintance floating in filth and declares, "He was some kind of a man. What does it matter what you say about people?" And then comes the final "adios" as she walks into the bleak darkness of her seedy Mexican border town.
Although her role isn't big, and I, for one, would love to see much more of her, Dietrich's quiet, charismatic presence makes a huge impression. She is even accompanied by her own catchy, pianola theme song. It announces each one of her appearances. Although several IMDb reviewers did not appreciate them, the other cast members who stand out for me are Akim Tamiroff, the frustrated leader-by-default of the criminal Grandy Family, and Dennis Weaver, more commonly known as Matt Dillon's loyal sidekick in the iconic "Gunsmoke" television series, as one very wacky night manager in an isolated motel owned by the Grandys on the U. S. side of the border. Apparently, the influence of this "Grande" clan has infested both sides of a border that has been troubled and corrupt ever since it first came into existence.
While I have appreciated Charlton Heston in much better film performances, I agree with other IMDb reviewers that he is seriously miscast here as Ramon Miguel Vargas, a Mexican law enforcement official. My opinion is not based upon what I would expect a Mexican to look like as I have known many Mexicans of European heritage who feature much lighter skin than Heston but rather on Heston's stilted, awkward delivery, as if he were carefully reciting lines as he thought a Mexican person should pronounce them. The thin mustache, which was obviously added to give him ethnic credibility, didn't help matters at all. If Riccardo Montalban, Anthony Quinn, or Jose Ferrer were unavailable for the role, there were Anglo actors who could have performed this role with far better results. One may triumph as Moses and Judah Ben-Hur but flop as Mike Vargas. Who knew?
Although some reviewers went so far as to state that Joseph Calleia deserved an Oscar for his performance, I couldn't accept this fine actor as such a dim-witted, unobservant nebbisch who didn't see his corrupt, unethical boss, Chief Quinlan (Orson Welles), for the scoundrel that he was. While the predicaments experienced by Janet Leigh, as Vargas' new bride, sometimes stretch the imagination, Leigh does her best with the incredulous circumstances that were handed to her. In every film in which I have seen her, she always adds to the visual appeal and makes a positive dramatic contribution. This is no exception.
Other reviewers have sufficiently covered the plot synopsis and the director's serious conflicts with the studio, and I will admit that I didn't always understand the action even after seeing this a few times. My mind wanders during some of the tedious dialogue. For me, the tension established at the very beginning of the film and the overall unsavory atmosphere of the US-Mexican border, as created so adeptly by Welles mostly through creative camera techniques and angles, maintained my interest to the end. While the film suffers from many flaws, including the miscasting of its lead, speeding like mad through the alleys of a Mexican border town without even hitting as much as a stray animal, far too many '56 Chrysler convertibles to believe in this setting, and some really bizarre, if not indecipherable, dialogue, its attributes somehow exceed its weaknesses.
Although her role isn't big, and I, for one, would love to see much more of her, Dietrich's quiet, charismatic presence makes a huge impression. She is even accompanied by her own catchy, pianola theme song. It announces each one of her appearances. Although several IMDb reviewers did not appreciate them, the other cast members who stand out for me are Akim Tamiroff, the frustrated leader-by-default of the criminal Grandy Family, and Dennis Weaver, more commonly known as Matt Dillon's loyal sidekick in the iconic "Gunsmoke" television series, as one very wacky night manager in an isolated motel owned by the Grandys on the U. S. side of the border. Apparently, the influence of this "Grande" clan has infested both sides of a border that has been troubled and corrupt ever since it first came into existence.
While I have appreciated Charlton Heston in much better film performances, I agree with other IMDb reviewers that he is seriously miscast here as Ramon Miguel Vargas, a Mexican law enforcement official. My opinion is not based upon what I would expect a Mexican to look like as I have known many Mexicans of European heritage who feature much lighter skin than Heston but rather on Heston's stilted, awkward delivery, as if he were carefully reciting lines as he thought a Mexican person should pronounce them. The thin mustache, which was obviously added to give him ethnic credibility, didn't help matters at all. If Riccardo Montalban, Anthony Quinn, or Jose Ferrer were unavailable for the role, there were Anglo actors who could have performed this role with far better results. One may triumph as Moses and Judah Ben-Hur but flop as Mike Vargas. Who knew?
Although some reviewers went so far as to state that Joseph Calleia deserved an Oscar for his performance, I couldn't accept this fine actor as such a dim-witted, unobservant nebbisch who didn't see his corrupt, unethical boss, Chief Quinlan (Orson Welles), for the scoundrel that he was. While the predicaments experienced by Janet Leigh, as Vargas' new bride, sometimes stretch the imagination, Leigh does her best with the incredulous circumstances that were handed to her. In every film in which I have seen her, she always adds to the visual appeal and makes a positive dramatic contribution. This is no exception.
Other reviewers have sufficiently covered the plot synopsis and the director's serious conflicts with the studio, and I will admit that I didn't always understand the action even after seeing this a few times. My mind wanders during some of the tedious dialogue. For me, the tension established at the very beginning of the film and the overall unsavory atmosphere of the US-Mexican border, as created so adeptly by Welles mostly through creative camera techniques and angles, maintained my interest to the end. While the film suffers from many flaws, including the miscasting of its lead, speeding like mad through the alleys of a Mexican border town without even hitting as much as a stray animal, far too many '56 Chrysler convertibles to believe in this setting, and some really bizarre, if not indecipherable, dialogue, its attributes somehow exceed its weaknesses.