In Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas—the crime rate is skyrocketing & drugs are pouring in easily and all because of the The Pineda crime family—consisting of matriarch “Ramona” (Lucha Villa) and her sons & nephews. The law enforcement in Nuevo Laredo are conflicted because they cannot stop the Pineda family without getting their officers killed & when they think they have arrested one of them, they’re immediately set free by the corrupt lawyer dubbed “El Abogado Del Diablo” (The Devil's Lawyer) (played by the wonderful Cesar Sobrevals). Only one man can truly put an end to the Pineda’s and it is retired federal agent/lawyer Eduardo Lobo “El Fiscal De Hierro” (The Iron Prosecutor) (Mario Almada). Eduardo is ordered to come back to the police force in Nuevo Laredo to rid of the Pineda’s and despite his wife pleading him not to, he does so anyway and right away he gets to work. He fights off many Pineda hitmen, stops their drug shipments from coming in & he even declines a bribe from the Abogado del Diablo by literally kicking him hard in the balls. When Eduardo kills one of Ramona’s sons, she then kills his father & kidnaps his youngest son. When the young son is killed by accident, Eduardo grows furious and goes after Ramona & her family hard!
When El Fiscal De Hierro first came out, it was a huge hit on both sides of the border and it's pretty obvious why it was so recieved so well. El Fiscal De Hierro offers an amazing story with plenty of gun-firing action & violence to keep you glued to the screen and all of this portrayed by an all-star cast. Leading man Mario Almada is ridiculously good in this movie and so much that you literally root for him to beat the Pineda family, but that’s not to say you don’t completely hate on the Pineda’s because they’re quite the appealing antagonists—especially the matriarch Ramona who’s played by famous ranchera singer Lucha Villa. Lucha Villa has always been the romantic type in both music & acting, but here in El Fiscal De Hierro she’s a powerful mother who wants to succeed in the drug world and when she loses one of her sons, she shows zero mercy with her revenge. I truly believe this is Lucha’s best & most memorable movie role. She is simply very amazing here. She also randomly sings in the movie, but tastefully done. It seems our Ramona wasn't always such a mean lady.. Ramona's sons & nephews are played by Juan Pelaez, Ramon Menendez, Alfonso Munguia, Mario Del Rio & Juan Moro—these men truly played their parts perfectly since they all truly look like drunken, gritty narcos. These particular characters are the ones who mostly provide a lot of the gun-firing scenes which are top-notch and coordinated perfectly. The movie begins with so much gun fire and ends with so much gun fire. It's incredible!
Next to its amazing cast & action—the plot of the movie is very intriguing since it is based on true events that happened a decade beforehand. El Fiscal De Hierro is based on the real life Fiscal De Hierro who was named Salvador Del Toro Rosales and he was sent out to Nuevo Laredo to rid of the Reyes Pruneda crime family. The Reyes Pruneda family was headed by “Simona”, a matriarch just like in the movie. And the Pruneda’s also had a corrupt lawyer that was helping them out with bribes & legalities. He too was called “El Abogado Del Diablo”. Then to have El Fiscal De Hierro even more close to the real story, the movie was almost shot entirely on location in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas & Laredo, TX—just like where it all really happened.
While there are plenty of true aspects put into the movie, there are fictional aspects in it as well. For example: El Fiscal De Hierro's oldest son longs & argues to be a cop just like him, but he condemns him from doing so thus leading him to a drunken depression. That never really happened. Then El Fiscal’s father is murdered by some of Pineda sons and that too never really happened, but clearly adds for dramatic effect alongside the murder of the youngest son (also fiction).
Mario Almada was at the prime of his career in the 1980’s by starring in many action-crime movies & dramas. While there are many to list as his best, El Fiscal De Hierro is truly on top for sure because this movie is done right in all aspects—thus making it serious, badass & very memorable. El Fiscal De Hierro is still remembered to this very day by those who have seen it back then and over the years after. I truly believe this is one of the greatest Mexican action-crime movies of the 1980’s. A must see!