The Mexican ¤¤¤¤¤
I was expecting a bit more action from the few trailers I had seen but despite first appearances The Mexican turns out to be on the funnier side of things. Brad Pitt, as Jerry, does a great job of being a dazed and confused kind of soul with all the right intentions and two left feet. I have read a few reviews that have been harsh on his performance, but I thought he did an outstanding job as the ugly American. Believable and in my opinion has learned quite a bit from mentor Robert Redford.
Jerry and Sam, Roberts character, are quibbling throughout the movie. Sam spews psychobable much of the time with Jerry trying to process what she means and deciding how best to ease her concerns. A decent poke at relationship therapy.
The scenery was a throwback to some of the gunslinger flicks from the 1970's and was shot with an intentional timeless quality (save the 2001 VW Beetle product placement). A brief aside, do they really still make Tab Cola? I have seen it in many films recently and am beginning to think that film makers use it just like they do with those bogus 555-prefix phone numbers. If anyone knows, please mention it in the comments below.
James Gandolfini of The Sopranos fame, deserves quite a bit of credit for moving this movie along during the long middle stretches. The movie does get slow at parts but the payoff at the end is pretty decent. A few surprises and some very funny recurring gags. The Mexican is along the lines of Pulp Fiction meets an old Hepburn/Tracy movie.
Bottom line, if you are not a Pitt or Roberts fan do not go see this movie. You will be subjected to over 2 hours of close-ups of the two and will be nauseated. If you can tolerate Pitt and Roberts then by all means go see this movie. It is funny but also dark in parts. This is not one of the 'pretty girl gets in trouble, gets bailed out' movies that Roberts is usually in. It is a bit more dark with a higher body count than a normal Roberts movie. If you liked Pulp Fiction and want to bring your date to something with a bit less gore and depravity this is the ticket.
[Lemme know what you think of this review, I think I might stick to reviewing music from now on.]
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