If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

Fresh and Exciting

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

This is one of those films that has so many characters in it that it's very easy to lose track of the plot as people discuss their intricate relationships and interactions. I enjoyed the film and was engrossed in it, but frequently lost due to the many twists and turns. Of course part of the appeal is wondering just who is doing what to whom and why, so perhaps this isn't as much of a problem as I'm making it out to be.It's a very well-made, well-acted film with a great cast and exotic, frightening location. I doubt it will do much for tourism to Tijuana, but it is a very taut, timely movie that will hold your interest. There are a few typical clichés (the hooker with the heart of gold - Mexicans who speak English to each other even when there are no native English speakers around), but these are kept to a minimum. Ray Liota is one of the producers of the film, but it's not "his" movie. In fact, Andy Garcia does a superb job of being quietly creepy and even a bit sympathetic. If you're looking for a powerful, somewhat dark drama, The Line fits the bill excellently.

An all-star ensemble in this crime thriller set in one of the most dangerous cities in Mexico, Tijuana. Veteran hit man Mark Shields(Ray Liotta)is assigned to track down Mexican drug lord Pelon(Esai Morales), who is the head of the Salazar Crime Cartel. Pelon has been the target of the American government for quite some time; now they expect Shields and his 20 years of killing experience to bring him down. Pelon puts himself in the cross-hairs with his decision to switch from Colombian cocaine to heroin from Afghanistan. The film lumbers a bit; the acting tries to make up for the lack of action. Others of note in the cast: Andy Garcia, Armand Assante, Bruce Davidson, Danny Trejo and Valerie Cruz.

I'd never heard of this film at all but snapped it up when I saw the cast and read the back of the jacket. Suffice to say it didn't quite live up to expectations and once again proved the age old adage of 'don't judge a book (or a DVD) by its cover'. Watchable for the most part, this is a film that adds up at the end to a little bit less than the sum of all its parts. I guessed correctly that the director was pretty new to this game and I must say those behind the scenes did pretty well to secure Liotta, Garcia and Asante for this.In a nutshell, when the Taliban attempt to form an alliance with a powerful northern Mexican drug cartel, supplying drugs in exchange for being able to use their smuggling network, they attract the attention of US intelligence agencies and the covert ops heat is brought down on them (or so it appears). At the same time there's a power struggle for control of the cartel amongst the heirs apparent to the throne. Little is seen of officialdom and we are instead treated to local operatives/soldiers of fortune and their controllers south of the border.There is no shortage of violence, tempered by the character of Liotta, a man haunted and tormented by the female victim of a previous hit. Naturally he's seeking some kind of redemption which is nicely and conveniently laid out at the end of the film along with a twist that merely serves to undermine much of any credibility previously established throughout the rest of the film.The film is short of dialogue and any real character development, instead relying on visuals and the score to create atmosphere, set scenes and keep the story moving along, Some of the editing and camera work seems a bit attention deficit disorder orientated as well, with perhaps a time limit of a couple of seconds placed on any one shot. I didn't find it too much of a problem but I know that it's a major annoyance for some people.This film was let down badly both with the twist ending and the inclusion of a 'Taliban' plot, both of which were unnecessary and I thought damaging to the credibility of the rest of the film. Not only that, but after an hour and a half or so of portraying Tijuana as a seedy sh!th0le full of thugs, thieves, gangsters and hookers, the director had the audacity to insert a big 'what a wonderful place Tijuana is and what wonderful people live there' message just at the start of the closing credits. I thought this summed up the whole project quite well, not quite doing what the makers thought they were doing.Worth a look, but not a must see.

The film left a strong impression on me, which is why I'm an ardent supporter of and proponent for it. I love crime/gangster dramas, because a well-made one is able to compress and magnify human emotions through a clear-cut dramatic arc of its main characters. The nature of the genre means that the highest possible stakes are in play -- namely human life. When this is complicated by a flawed protagonist, as Ray Liotta's character certainly is, who also is propelled along a spiritual arc parallel to the dramatic one, then the story becomes even more interesting and compelling.Of course, it all starts with Mr. Frazier's screenplay, which was excellent. I have to give credit to the director, Mr. Cotten, as well, but the lyrical, poetic, almost operatic tone of the film comes from the script. His writing drew me in, captured my imagination, and was emotionally resonant. I spent a lot of time in Tijuana between 2004- 2008, when my friend was assigned to the U.S. Consulate there as Chief of the American Citizens Services Section, and the verisimilitude of atmosphere was not missed, which is important, since TJ itself is a character in the film.Finally, because of all these effective elements and components (great writing, acting, art direction, cinematography and direction), the film took me on a journey that I wanted to go on, and didn't cheat me emotionally. Some stories are served and heightened by ambiguous endings, but 'La Linea' called for a clearly-defined one, and the denouement was perfect. And even with the integrity of the story logic, I never saw the plot twist at the end coming! It was a satisfying one, and again, a sign of great writing. I truly hope that the film receives the recognition that it deserves