The 3,145 km length of border between the US and Mexico has always be one fraught with tensions, criminality and violence. Those that monitor it daily can’t help but be affected and not always in a good way. The story that drives Deadland speaks of that one pivotal day that ends up changing everything for the lives of three of the people that are tasked with the responsibility of overview.
Roberto Urbina plays Angel Waters, a man working for the US Border Patrol. He has a strong moral code but one that has been overwhelmed by witnessing a plethora of horrible events. He also has an innate sense of care for the co-workers and family that surround him. In a time of stress he makes a decision that will have have long reaching consequences for all those around him.
The knock on effects of this action cause his two closest workmates, Ray Hitchcock (McCaul Lombardi) and Salomé Veracruz (Julieth Restrepo) to slowly become unraveled. Angel is effected by this as well and as things progress for the three, the lines between truth and fiction become very blurred. Add the arrival of his long lost father and Angel becomes close to his breaking point.
As things progress to the extreme, the film never really settles in to either the mystic nor the real. It tries to make its point a unique one by virtue of your participation in the sensibilities presented. Real or imagined trauma has affected all the players to the extent that they have created their own state of being. The final reveal ties things in the physical world together while leaving the other realm as enigmatic as ever.
Rob Hudson
Deadland is available now on Digital, including Apple TV, Prime Video and Google Play in Australia & New Zealand.
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