The Mouse that Roared ... at the Border

by Stephen Helgesen

Who could forget Peters Sellers’ portrayal of three characters in the 1959 satirical film, “The Mouse That Roared?” If you’ve never seen the film, you can see a remake of it by taking a trip to our southern border. There, millions of faux asylum-seekers are recreating the plot in living color, every single day, as they cross, illegally, and plant their feet in our soil.

In the 1959 film, the European Duchy of Grand Fenwick has fallen on hard times and is nearly bankrupt, due to competition to its sole export (a much sought-after wine) by a cheaper American version. Its heads of state, the Duchess Gloriana XII and the Prime Minister, Count Rupert Mountjoy, (both played by Sellers) are convinced that the only way out of their dilemma is to call upon Tully Bascomb, the Duchy’s game warden. They promote him to Field Marshall and order him to set sail for America where he will attack it, full-well knowing Tully’s 20 soldiers will be defeated!

After the pro-forma battle, they plan to quickly surrender and then reap the rewards of a vanquished foe, thereby ensuring the future of the Duchy. As with any good story, the plot takes a few twists and turns, but all’s well that ends well. The Duchy is saved and everybody lives happily ever after until a mouse enters the scene. (By the way, the film cost $300K to make and grossed $2.2 million.) I'll leave it there and suggest that you find a copy and watch it.

Unfortunately, there’s another ‘mouse that roared’ story playing out in real time at our southern border.