U.S. Premiere

Within the North American immigrant diaspora, the disparities between the United States and Mexico are equivalent to the disparities between Mexico and certain Central American countries. Immigrants from Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and Nicaragua look upon Mexico as a hostile environment they must brave before facing the ultimate challenge: the U.S. border.

Director Juan Manuel Sepúlveda confronts us with a penetrating view of the first steps of that journey. Long takes of seemingly endless waiting parallel the agonizing delays the immigrants must tolerate. Likewise, images of people who have lost limbs trying to hold onto passing trains give us a sense of the misery, but they cannot fully transmit the experience as the immigrants live it. The treacherous nature of the journey reveals what is happening beyond the border of the images. The tragedy is that their harrowing experience is born of necessity, and the unseen final destination is no less perilous than the journey.

Shocking and complex, THE INFINITE BORDER wisely refrains from romanticizing the people or the journey. The film pulls no punches in style or content. The immigrants speak their minds freely; some express fear, while others express defiance. Ultimately, Sepúlveda challenges us to reconcile our typical impressions of immigrants with those that stand before us testifying to their determination to cross over regardless of the physical and emotional costs.

-Deborah L. Jaramillo