The Mexican
by Gore Verbinski
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Bob Balaban, Brad Pitt, J.K. Simmons, James Gandolfini, Julia RobertsDirector: Gore Verbinski
Brand: Paramount
Producer: Aaron Ryder
Producer: Christopher Ball
Producer: J.H. Wyman
Writer: J.H. Wyman
Producer: John Baldecchi
Producer: Lawrence Bender
Producer: Paul Hellerman
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, DVD-Video, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 123 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2001-08-07
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Dreamworks Video
Movie Reviews of The Mexican
Movie Review: Out of the Mainstream and Into the Art
Summary: 5 Stars
A number of people completely pan this movie, and after reading almost all of the one- and two-star reviews, I think I understand why. You see, Hollywood doesn't usually come out with an art film, and when they do, nobody seems to know what to do. I am in an almost unique position in that I don't watch any television at all, and so I do not see movie ads and trailers. I also do not listen to the radio, and do not hear movie critics. When I go see a movie, I could care less who wrote it, directed it, filmed it or starred in it. The movie either gets me, or it doesn't. End of story. "The Mexican" definitely gets me.
The words "art film" are thrown around a lot. In this case, I'm using one of the definitions that surfaced in the late 70s, which basically states that an art film is one which spends less time creating a believable plot and more time focusing on the internals of the characters. Think of a movie like "A Life Less Ordinary". I'm not saying that this is the correct definition of an art film, I'm just saying that this is the one I'm using here.
During "The Mexican", we get to see legends from the past as they are represented in the minds of the storytellers. We also get to see quirky events from the past and present which apply directly to the main theme of the film while having no rational explanation (a traffic light mysteriously malfunctioning as we here an off-screen car accident, for example). The writers don't need to apologize for this: the style of the movie is blatantly declaring, "I am an art film. Do not judge me on my realism, judge me on my characters." The people who criticize the legend of the pistol as presented in this movie might just as well criticize the future presented in the movie Wall-E. It's not about the realism, it's about the characters!
I like Brad Pitt in most of his films, and I dislike Julia Roberts in most of her films. In this film, the two were the right actors to play the right characters. I don't even need to sing the praises of our hitman -- an incredible performance is expected, and an incredible performance is delivered.
The cinematography is beautiful. The movie just ends up feeling so organic. It seems that the moments of brutal violence are set so that they get your heart rate up at just the moments the director intended. I think some of the other reviewers were expecting a Hollywood movie to stick to its "every bullet blows something up" roots, but the violence in this movie is actually about as true to life as I have seen in a Hollywood movie (that is to say, nothing like most other Hollywood movies). The violence in this movie seems to follow the old aphorism, "hours of boredom punctuated by moments of sheer terror". For a movie of this sort, the violence is perfectly balanced to the story, without an ounce too much or too little.
"The Mexican" requires at least two watches to fully appreciate the depth of the love story -- both of present and of legend -- and to appreciate the simple beauty of the film, in all its sound and color. I can understand why many people would dislike this film. It is not for everyone. It is like many other types of art: it is either your style, or it's not. For example, I think the world would have been better off if Picasso had never been born. On the other hand, I am utterly fascinated by Monet's use of light in his paintings. Some people are the exact opposite. This is a movie that you will either love, or hate, and if you love it as I do, you will truly love it.
Summary of The Mexican
Studio: Paramount Home Video Release Date: 03/28/2006 Run time: 123 minutes Rating: RPart road movie, part romantic comedy, part thriller, and a whole lotta fun, The Mexican could get by on star power alone, but it offers Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, and a clever plot full of delightful surprises. It's a thoroughly enjoyable shaggy-dog story in which the downtrodden Jerry Welbach (Pitt) copes with a dual dilemma: his girlfriend Samantha (Roberts) has just dumped him to pursue solo ambitions in Las Vegas, and a manipulative mobster has ordered Jerry to Mexico to retrieve a coveted antique pistol (the "Mexican" of the title) that carries a legacy of legend, death, and danger. Jerry soon has his hands full with bandits, bloodshed, and a grizzly hound dog that vanishes and reappears with amusing regularity. En route to Vegas, Samantha's taken hostage by a burly assassin (James Gandolfini) who's attached to the gun-fetching scheme and is, in more ways than one, not who he seems to be.
Like a good magic act, J.H. Wyman's original screenplay distracts you from its gaps of logic, using unexpected revelations to fuel its strategic vitality. It also provides a wealth of character development, and director Gore Verbinski (Mouse Hunt) gives his stellar cast equal time to shine. It hardly matters that Pitt and Roberts spend most of the film apart; their time together is worth waiting for, and the machinations that separate them play out like a cross between vintage Peckinpah and Romancing the Stone. And why is the accursed pistola so valuable? That's just another surprise, setting the stage for the arrival of yet another big-name star, whose motivations are pure in a film full of double-crosses and darkly shaded humor. With a giddy plot like this, star power is just icing on the cake. --Jeff Shannon
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