Born in East L.A. (1987)

Director:

Cheech Marin

Writer:

Cheech Marin (written by)

Release Date:

21 August 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

This time Cheech is not just on the wrong side of the law. He's on the wrong side of the line.

Plot:

Rudy is an American of Mexican descent who is caught up in an immigration raid on a factory. Deported to Mexico as an illegal immigrant...

Plot Keywords:

Illegal Immigrant | Reference To John Wayne | Escape | Based On Song | Independent Film

Awards:

4 wins

Cast

Cheech Marin	...	Rudy
Paul Rodriguez	...	Javier
Daniel Stern	...	Jimmy
Kamala Lopez	...	Dolores
Jan-Michael Vincent	...	McCalister
Lupe Ontiveros	...	Rudy's mother
Urbanie Lucero	...	Rudy's sister
Chastity Ayala	...	Rudy's niece
David Perez	...	Rudy's nephew
Neith Hunter	...	Marcie
Larry Blackmon	...	Slick dude
Tito Larriva	...	Oscar
Geoffrey Rivas	...	Immigration Aide (as Geoff Rivas)
Eddie Barth	...	Lester
Miguel Delgado	...	José

Runtime:

85 min | USA:93 min (TV version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

UK:15 | USA:R | Iceland:L

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Clear Type

Trivia:

The theatrically-released and home video versions cut the entire ending short (about 15 to 20 minutes of footage). In this version, the appearance of the priest standing behind Rudy and Dolores in the last shot of the film is never explained. However, censored versions of the film, such as the version shown on Comedy Central, have the entire ending intact in order to fill out the film's length, which was shortened by cutting other scenes that were not suitable for regular television.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Rudy is working as a tattoo artist, four "bullet hole" tattoos suddenly appear on his client's forehead near the end of the scene.

Quotes:

Immigration officer: Where were you born?
Rudy: What?
Immigration officer: Read my lips, El Paco. Where were you born?
Rudy: I was born in East L.A., man.
Immigration officer: Sure, sure. If you were born in East L.A., then who's the president of the United States?
Rudy: I-I don't know, that guy, that guy who was on T.V., the guy in the cowboy hat... he used to be on "Death Valley Days"... uh, John Wayne!
Immigration officer: Get him out of here.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)

Soundtrack:

Purple Haze

A dynamic comedy

I heard about this movie recently, and last night I finally got to see it. I'm glad I did! There were a few laugh-out-loud moments, including scenes with Javier and scenes when Rudy has to deal with the boarder patrol. The romance with the woman from El Salvador was actually tolerable (I generally do not like romance in movies), plus it didn't take up too much of the time. As the movie goes on the audience sees Rudy is a man with a good heart, yet I sensed no sappieness. Another aspect of "Born in East L.A." is that it can make people think about the struggles and poverty that happens just over our boarder; this serious issue is presented in a comedy though, so it's easier to take and people don't have to put their guard up for preachy morals while they're looking for a good laugh. Yes, the movie isn't very deep, but it certainly doesn't have to be. I would recomend "Born in East L.A." to anyone. I definitely have to see it again.