The Illegal
1977·United States·110 min.
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After his daughter's birth, Roberto leaves his town in Michoacan to make money in the United States. He's "an illegal," crossing into California and taking work wherever he can: picking strawberries, grapes, lettuce, and cucumbers. He hitchhikes, rides freight trains, and depends on the kindness of strangers. Near Stockton, things look up when a sympathetic waitress gives him a place to live and he gets a better job washing helicopters. But immigration raids are a constant possibility that can end stability. Can Roberto hold onto his equilibrium in this foreign land where hard work is not enough?