Walkaway Joe (film)
2020
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- The film holds a 63% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 91 reviews with an average rating of 5.71/10. The site's consensus reads " Desierto 's thought-provoking themes and refreshing perspective are unfortunately offset by a predictable plot and thinly written characters."
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Oct 14, 2016 · Peter Sobczynski October 14, 2016. Tweet. Now streaming on: Powered by JustWatch. With its combination of an unapologetically pulpy basic concept and overt sociopolitical commentary, “Desierto” seems like the kind of movie that the late, great Sam Fuller himself might have cranked out if he were still making movies.
Oct 14, 2016 · 63% 93 Reviews Tomatometer 46% 2,500+ Ratings Audience Score When their truck suddenly breaks down, a migrant named Moises leads 13 others on a trek through the harsh terrain along the...
- (120)
- Jonás Cuarón
- R
- Gael García Bernal
Oct 14, 2016 · Desierto. Metascore Mixed or Average Based on 24 Critic Reviews. 51. User Score Mixed or Average Based on 20 User Ratings. 5.0. My Score. Hover and click to give a rating. Add My Review. Where to Watch. Amazon ($2.99) All Watch Options. View All. Critic Reviews. View All. Metascore. Mixed or Average Based on 24 Critic Reviews. 51. 38% Positive.
- (24)
- Jonás Cuarón
- R
- 1 min
- A C-movie thriller that has admirable ambitions, but fails to hit the target on many of them.
- Verdict
By Alex Welch
Posted: Oct 14, 2016 8:36 pm
Alfonso Cuaron’s name is well-known in the film industry now, after carefully creating a filmography of boundary-pushing, exceptionally-crafted films leading up to his eventual Oscar win with Gravity in 2014. He’s cemented himself as one of the most skilled craftsman in his industry right now, and hasn’t done much to challenge that status either. So, with his father’s reputation looming quite massively over him, the filmmaker’s son, Jonas Cuaron, has made his film debut this year with Desierto, a new action thriller that has admirable action and political ambitions, but never quite grows to be anything more than that.
Opening on an expansive shot of the sunrise over the Mexican desert, Desierto quickly shifts its focus to a truckload of immigrants driving their way towards the fence dividing Mexico and the United States. In the truck itself, we’re introduced to Gael Garcia Bernal’s Moises, a mechanic making his way into the US in the hopes of reuniting with his family. Before the truck is able to make it to its destination though, the engine dies and Moises as well as the rest of his fellow immigrants are forced to walk the rest of the way, through the dividing fence and across the badlands, a dangerous and much longer route than they were originally supposed to take.
Things get far worse for the group when Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s sociopathic Sam, along with his hunting dog (appropriately named Tracker), sets his sights on the group, quickly beginning a murderous hunt of the immigrants in an attempt to keep them from truly entering into “his” country. As you can probably imagine, in addition to the character’s name, Sam’s truck also features a Confederate flag blowing on the back of it, in case you couldn’t quite pick up on the political references that Cuaron, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mateo Garcia, was getting at with the villain.
While Morgan does his absolute best to bring dimension and something actually interesting to Sam with his performance, once again he finds himself in a situation where he’s much better than the material he’s been given, including some truly cringe-worthy dialogue he’s forced to give near the start and end of the film. Most of his banter is with his unresponsive canine companion anyways, so it’s not like he really has much to bounce off of.
Desierto has an interesting premise in its hands, and the perfect location for that story to grow and expand in, but it instead shrinks more and more as time goes on, thanks to a predictable script and paper-thin characters.
- Alex Welch
Sep 16, 2015 · Desierto review – an immigration parable with thrills but little depth. Director Jonás Cuarón has some of his father Alfonso’s knack for physical tension, but his second feature is limited by...
Oct 13, 2016 · Desierto Is a Horror Movie for the Age of Trump Jonas Cuarón’s film sees a racist vigilante stalking and murdering Mexican migrants as they cross the border. By David Sims
Parents need to know that Desierto is a thriller about a white American who ruthlessly hunts Mexican migrants near the countries' border. Violence is frequent and intense, with shooting and killing, blood spurts and bloody pools, dead bodies, animals killed in horrific ways, a vehicle crash, and other….
