The term ‘genre’ is generally understood to refer to types of film that share common characteristics relating to theme and style of filmmaking. For instance, mention that a film is a ‘Western’ or a ‘musical’ and most people will instantly understand its basic story-telling conventions. Classifications of genre (and sub-genre) are also used to target potential audiences, determine production and marketing strategies, and to provide film critics with a basis for comparing and judging films.

Genre categories are also employed to identify distinct stages in the historical development of film: typically, first is an experimental phase, next a classical era as the genre blooms (sometimes referred to as a ‘golden age’), followed by the proliferation of sub-genres (such as the ‘Spaghetti Western’) or refinements that tend toward excess and bowdlerization (say, Border Frankenstein meets the Beatles!!). Ultimately, a genre may collapse under the weight of repetition and parody, before slipping into terminal decline. Enterprising filmmakers and critics sometimes revive a genre, which is how we got Neo-noir, for instance.

I decided to nominate 25 canonical films that together constitute the foundational films in my ‘border film genre.’ The list is of course a personal choice, but the following are demonstrably films of quality and distinction as measured by originality, visuals, screenplay, music, performance, and overall impact and significance. In any event, it’s a good place to begin deciding which films to watch. 

1936 VAMONOS CON PANCHO VILLA!       
Director: Fernando de Fuentes     
Subgenre: Revolution

1949 BORDER INCIDENT                              
Director: Anthony Mann               
Migration

1955 ESPALDAS MOJADAS                          
Director: Alejandro Galindo          
Subgenre: Migration

1958 TOUCH OF EVIL                                    
Director: Orson Welles                  
Subgenre: Crime

1969 THE WILD BUNCH                                
Director: Sam Peckinpah               
Subgenre: Western

1983 EL NORTE                                             
Director: Gregory Nava                  
Subgenre: Migration

1987 BORN IN EAST LA                                 
Director: Cheech Marin                 
Subgenre: Comedy

1991 COMO AGUA PARA CHOCOLATE       
Director: Alfonso Arau                   
Subgenre: Revolution

1991 CABEZA DE VACA                                
Director: Nicolás Echeverria          
Subgenre: History

1994 EL JARDIN DEL EDEN                           
Director: María Novaro                 
Subgenre: Migration                        

1995 LONE STAR                                           
Director: John Sayles                      
Subgenre: Western

1998 LA OTRA CONQUISTA                          
Director: Salvador Carrasco          
Subgenre: History

1998 BAJO CALIFORNIA                               
Director: Carlos Bolado Muño      
Subgenre: Fantasy

2000 TRAFFIC                                                
Director: Stephen Soderburgh      
Subgenre: Crime

2003 YO LA PEOR DE TODAS                        
Director:  María Luisa Bemberg     
Subgenre: History

2004 AND STARRING PANCHO VILLA …     
Director: Bruce Beresford              
Subgenre: Western

2008 SLEEP DEALER                                      
Director: Alex Rivera                      
Subgenre: Fantasy

2008 PURGATORIO                                      
Director: Roberto Rochín               
Subgenre: Migration                        

2009 SIN NOMBRE                                       
Director: Cary Joji Fukunaga         
Subgenre: Crime 

2010 MACHETE                                            
Director: Robert Rodriguez           
Subgenre: Fantasy 

2015 SICARIO                                                
Director: Denis Villeneuve             
Subgenre: Crime

2015 600 MILLAS                           
Director: Gabriel Ripstein              
Subgenre: Crime

2016 TRANSPECOS                                       
Director: Greg Kwedar                   
Subgenre: Western

2019 YA NO ESTOY AQUI                             
Director: Frías de la Parra              
Subgenre: Migration

2021 SIN SENAS PARTICULARES                 
Director: Fernanda Valadez           
Subgenre: The ‘Disappeared’