In Gogol’s source novel, Chichikov was buying dead serfs from landowners, who would otherwise be forced to pay taxes on them until the next Russian census, so he could use them as collateral for a huge loan that he would then abscond and default on. Strindler, whose name sounds aptly like “swindler” wants to buy the names of dead Mexican migrant workers for some similarly nefarious purpose. Not really a spoiler alert: Strindler’s end game lacks Gogol’s brilliant satirical logic.
However, Cox proves to be his own best asset, portraying the fastidious yet sardonic—and profoundly corrupt and corrupting—Strindler, with wry panache. Much like his Russian analogue, Cox’s conman goes about his episodic business, holding up a mirror to the hypocrisies and prejudices of the Arizona bordertown. To a large extent, the rest of the cast of characters consist of broad stereotypes. However, Strindler is a character who is a real character.
