Borderline Humor

The gags from Cheech Marin’s zany “Born in East L.A.” apparently didn’t translate too well south of the border.

Retitled “Un picaro de Los Angeles” (“A Rogue from L.A”), it opened recently in Mexico City. Ads went to great lengths to explain the plot--about a Chicano who is deported by mistake to Mexico--instead of letting the image of Cheech crossing the border suffice. As an added come-on, ads proclaimed, “Con el super hit de Bruce Springsteen”-- a reference, of course, to Cheech’s version of “Born in the U.S.A.” (Added irony: The average Mexican isn’t that familiar with the Boss!)

Critical reaction: A reviewer for El Herroldo told us, “There’s not much sympathy (identification) when the shoe’s on the other foot, especially since the hero can’t speak our language. After all, he can go home again. It really doesn’t solve anything. It’s at best an interesting distraction.”

“The Milagro Beanfield War” was sneaked for the Mexican press recently and may get a new title before release here. The reason: “Milagro” translates as “Miracle”--which means audiences might expect Robert Redford’s film to be religious, rather than a fable of small town revolution.