Here is an interesting article from http://www.debbieschlussel.com/ reviewing some of the movies that came out over the past weekend. This follows this post about some of the movies from last week and THIS POST about some movies that have been released over the past few years that you might have missed! This all follows this post about guidelines to choosing good movies to watch yourself!
By
Debbie Schlussel
“
The Infiltrator (Rated R),”
in theaters today, is a stark reminder of the sacrifices made and risks
taken by U.S. Customs agents. And it’s a solid reminder of why the
post-9/11 elimination of the U.S. Customs Service and its agents (most
of whom became ICE agents) was a huge mistake, along with the creation
of the Department of Homeland Security. The movie is a must-see. And
it’s one of the best movies I’ve seen so far this year, and still would
be in a year with better movies.
I liked this movie because the good guys are good and the bad guys
are bad. There is no moral equivalence here. Robert Mazur, the
real-life U.S. Customs agent who risked his life and those of his family
members to serve our country, is a decent honorable man. He refuses to
cheat on his wife, even when duty “requires” it while working
undercover.
Bryan Cranston is Mazur and undercover operative who brings down drug
dealers and kingpins. He has the opportunity to retire after an
on-the-job injury and many years of hard work. But, instead, Mazur
agrees to pose as an accountant who money-launders cash. The movie
follows Customs’ “Operation C-Chase,” in which Mazur and his fellow
agents helped the U.S. government bring down major players in Pablo
Escobar’s and Manuel Noriega’s drug rings, as well as the BCCI–the Bank
of Credit and Commerce International, owned and run by Muslims. (Not
shown in the movie is that the bank also laundered money for Islamic
terrorists and corrupt Muslim regimes–a redundant phrases.) The
operation was so successful that it took down 85 high-level drug cartel
operatives and corrupt bankers (though I was amazed at the short
sentences the men got, as described in a postscript at the end of the
movie).
John Leguizamo plays Mazur’s partner in the operation, Emir Abreu.
I’ve never been a fan of Leguizamo, but this role is custom-made for
him. The beautiful Diane Kruger looks more stunning than ever here as
Kathy Ertz, the agent who pretended to be Mazur’s fiancee in the
undercover operation.
This movie is extremely violent (it is NOT for kids), but that’s
necessary to show the ruthlessness of the men with whom Mazur was
dealing and the risks he took to do his job and carry out this
operation. These were dangerous, vicious savages who wouldn’t have
hesitated to torture Mazur, his wife, and his young children to death.
There are several suspenseful scenes showing us how easy it would have
been for Mazur to have been discovered and murdered. And the movie does
them well.
But the movie isn’t entirely serious. There are moments that are
funny and light. And the movie is very entertaining from beginning to
end. There’s never a dull moment, and I was on the edge of my seat the
entire time. You will be, too. Yes, we’ve seen some of this story
before, but I haven’t seen it told this well on the silver screen in a
long time.
The acting in this is excellent, as is the attention to detail,
including 1980s decor, clothing, cars, and pop culture, including the
soundtrack. The script is written by 67-year-old first-timer Ellen
Brown Furman, the retired trial lawyer mother of the movie’s director,
Brad Furman. She captures well the angst and sorrow some federal agents
feel at the end of their operations, as they’ve come to subconsciously
“like” those whom they are ensnaring.
Also, I’d also be lying if I denied taking pride in the fact that two
of the “good guys” in this movie are real-life Jewish Americans–Mazur
and Bonni Tischler–who betray the lie that Jews aren’t tough guys
serving America in federal law enforcement.
This movie is mostly true, and you can learn more about it at
History vs. Hollywood. But don’t do so until
after you’ve seen it because the site contains a lot of spoilers.
There are a few minor things I didn’t like about the movie. First,
there’s the portrayal of an American businessman who was vital to the
operation as a Black man. But, in fact, this man, who undertook great
risks to his family to help the Customs agents (without earning a penny
for it), was White in real life. More about him in another post later
today. I hate fictional “diversity.” It’s simply fraud and never goes
the other way (Owen Wilson will never be cast as Martin Luther King,
Jr., I promise you).
I also didn’t care for the one-sided portrayal of Tischler, who was
the Commissioner of the U.S. Customs Service at the time. The movie is
based on Mazur’s memoir,
The Infiltrator: My Secret Life Inside the Dirty Banks Behind Pablo Escobar’s Medellín Cartel
,
and he and Tischler did not get along. She is portrayed as nearly
ruining the entire operation and then taking credit for its success.
Tischler was the first female federal law enforcement agent to rise
to head an agency, and her story is almost as interesting as the story
told in this movie. As readers know, I’m no feminist and I loathe
affirmative action based on female plumbing. But Tischler was not that
kind of woman. She was tough and earned the job, having risen from the
first female federal air marshal (then called a “sky marshal”) to
leading some of the biggest, most successful law enforcement operations.
She is played by Amy Ryan here, and is depicted at the time when she
headed the U.S. Customs Service office in Tampa, Florida. I know many
former Customs agents who worked with Bonni Tischler, and they liked
her. Said one, “I know her well. She was a pit bull, so I’d be
surprised that she would have messed up the operation [as portrayed in
the movie].” Tischler died of breast cancer at age 60 in 2005, so she
cannot defend herself.
Get Yours . . .
And finally, I could have done without the leftist-tinged,
anti-American postscript at the end of the movie alleging that the U.S.
used BCCI accounts to fund the Nicaraguan freedom fighters, a noble
cause.
Other than that, it’s a great movie. And Robert Mazur– is a great
American who, to date, cannot show his face because of the threats he
continues to face for the excellent work he did. These drug cartels
have long memories.
THREE-AND-A-HALF REAGANS


