Rating: R
Genre:
Comedy
Theatrical Release: 08/21/1987(USA)
Release Date: 01/07/2002
Dubbed: English/French/Espanol
Sound: DD2
Run Time: 85 Minutes
Flags: Mild Violence, Adult Situations, Questionable for Children, Adult Language, Profanity
Distributor/Studio: Universal Studios
Richard "Cheech" Marin, of
Cheech &
Chong fame, directed and starred in
Born in East L.A.. Inspired by
Marin's music-video parody of
Bruce Springsteen's
"Born in the USA", the film casts
Cheech as an East Los Angeles repairman. While paying a visit to a sweatshop toy factory,
Cheech is caught in the middle when the feds raid the place and cart off all the illegal alien workers. Since he's forgotten to bring his own i.d.,
Cheech is also shipped off to Mexico-where, having next to no knowledge of the Spanish tongue, he's virtually helpless. Desperate, he takes a job with crooked Tijuana saloon owner
Daniel Stern-the first of many "make-do" jobs that he assumes to earn enough money to return home. Along the way, he falls in love with El Salvadorian girl
Kamala Lopez, whose English is as fractured as
Cheech's Spanish.
~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
