Cartel Land provides an intricate and exploratory look into the Mexican cartels, the drug war, and the soldiers on each side of the border whom are trying to keep the evil away from their homes. We usually hear stories about our border patrol soldiers fighting the good fight and taking on some of the cartels. The news is always full of terror stories from around the borders and we only ever hear about what happens on our side. Little do most people know, a lot of the worse fighting is going on in Mexico, where innocent civilians are being murdered by the same cartels that terrorize us.
Back in Mexico, a doctor by the name of Jose Mireles is the one who is leading the fight against the destructive cartels. After Mexico’s military could no longer protect the citizens in the state of Michoacan, Mireles decided that it was time for his people to take matters into their own hands. The citizens rallied and gathered up all forms of weaponry they could to finally take a viable stand. The most interesting and unfortunate aspect of this scenario is that the military couldn’t stop the cartels? What happens when your military can no longer protect you? These are men and women of all ages taking up arms because they truly have no other options left. Their courage is truly amazing, as they are all continuously risking their lives for the people around them.
On the other side of the border, along what is called “Cocaine Alley,” veteran Tim Foley and a group of soldiers form their own resistance group to take on the cartels. As bad as things are over in Mexico, many of the cartels cause disastrous problems on our side. The smuggling of hard drugs into America has been destroying parts of our country for years and the problem has yet to go away. With his paramilitary group, Foley tracks members of the cartel in an attempt to sabotage parts of their communication and to get closer to eradicating them for good.
Director Matthew Heineman has crafted something intense, meaningful, and evocative. Many people are very quick to assert their opinion on what should be done about the border, but not enough people dig into the roots of the issues. In the opening of the film, we see many meth dealers cooking up a batch and explaining that this is what they were born into and the only reason they keep doing it is because of the demand for the drugs in America and the threat of the cartels. This film explores a very grey area, where the vigilantes actions may seem questionable, but you can’t necessarily blame them for sticking up for what’s right when government run soldiers can’t always solve the problem.
The aspects of vigilantes have divided people for a long while, with some taking issue with citizens taking the law into their own hands. It’s a very tricky situation, because on the one hand both countries have militaries that should be handling these issues. On the other hand, we can’t sit idly by and watch people get murdered as hard drugs are created in Mexico and then are brought into our country. No one is blaming the soldiers on either side for the continuation, but there is a huge problem and we’re seeing two unorthodox, temporary solutions. Heineman never holds back with his camera, graphically showing firefights, drug concoctions, and even the gruesome aftermath of cartel torture. This film is certainly not for the feint of heart, but it’s essential viewing for anyone who has a slight idea as to what’s really happening on our border. If the name means anything to you, master director Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty, The Hurt Locker, Point Break) has produced this film and has taken a great interest in it, so if you like her this is a must see.
