'The Mexican': Can't Sit Through The Entire Film (1 Viewer)

[Edwin Pereyra]

Halfway through this film, my wife and I had to turn it off. It was that bad. This is the first time in a while we had to do this. We're planning on watching the other half today, hoping it would only get better.
~Edwin
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[Tino]

It doesn't!

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Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus.

 

[Michael Reuben]

Any scene with James Gandolfini is worth watching. (They're also the only ones I remember. )
M.

 

[Sam Davatchi]

There are many movies that I watch in several viewings! Not necessarily all bad! Normally when they are bad, I never get the desire to go to the second part of the viewing! I didn't like "the Mexican" but to my surprise I watched it in one viewing!

 

[Mitty]

I think 'The Mexican' is best viewed as an absurdist comedy with occasional concessions to a plot, rather than as a plot driven film with occasional moments of humour.
I found Brad Pitt's predicament to be pretty damn funny at times, what with his bizarre relationship with that dog, and the cherry picker truck which always seems to be zooming up and down that one road. To me, Pitt was pretty effective at playing someone who is in WAY over his head, and has it written all over his face. Most of the scenes in Mexico had a bizarre, otherworldly mood and humour to them that I liked a lot. The Roberts/Gandolfini stuff was what I found to be somewhat laborious, although it had a few interesting moments. Plus, Gandolfini is a remarkable presence.
Overall, I liked it.

 

[Allen Hirsch]

I'm surprised you had such trouble with this film, Edwin.
I agree mostly with Mitty's approach/understanding. The only laborious parts, IMO, were the few Pitt/Roberts scenes. The stuff between Roberts and Gandolfini "made" this movie, because it added far more human interest, IMHO. I liked The Mexican quite a bit more than the reviews set me up to expect.
I can't decide if Pitt is a real acting talent or not (sometimes he's really good, and sometimes he doesn't seem to work or "fit" at all - whic may just say his range is limited), but he certainly was well cast for this part.
Oh, and I loved the story-telling flashbacks of the history of the gun.
[Edited last by Allen Hirsch on September 22, 2001 at 11:43 AM]

 

[stephen la]

Im sorry you thought the mexican was bad..
its one of my favorites this year.. it has a chick flick with roberts.comedy with brad pitt being over his head in mexico..and action in both vegas & mexico..
comedy action romances arent mixed too often.. I can think of The Big Hit & A Life Less Ordinary..lots of people gave those films bad reviews..but the people that liked them..really liked them..
if you like those films give the mexican a try...
for me its woth it alone for that "oiyeee!!" song by alan silvestri

 

[Tom-G]

Yes, James Gandolfini was the only reason to watch this film. He gave a terrific performance, however just about everytime he was on the screen Julia Roberts was too and she really dragged the film down. She is absolutely wretched and detracts from the film so much with her constant overacting.
It had some moments to it that were funny and worked quite well. Brad Pitt was fine, too. Overall, just not a very good film.

 

[Mark Pfeiffer]

Don't know what I'd think of The Mexican now, but I gave it a marginal recommendation when it was released. It came out in the midst of one of the absolute worst stretches of films I've ever seen, and this one wasn't bad. I even remarked in my review that it probably looked better than it might otherwise because everything else I had been seeing was dreck.
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[Bruce Hedtke]

I remember Ebert saying this film was fun up to a point, and then it went past that point and I agree with that. The last 40 minutes or so was just rehashing what came before that. Looks like they had a great idea for an hours worth of film and stretched it into two hours, making it absurd and a bit off-putting. I myself did enjoy it, but by the end, I was glad it was over. Not bad...but still not good enough.
Bruce
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Welcome aboard the Satellite of Love

 

[Edwin Pereyra]

Alright, I finished it all the way through. Its director says that this was a romantic comedy. While it had its moments, it was definitely neither romantic nor did it have a lot of funny jokes. The legend of the gun itself was the only part I thought was good. Julia Roberts somehow, was not right for the female lead but Brad Pitt’s performance works.
Overall, it was not bad. Just average. Still, there was a lot of talent wasted in the process, IMO.

(out of four)
~Edwin

 

[SteveGon]

I'll have to agree that Roberts was wrong for the part. It's not that I actively dislike her as many do, but histrionics were just plain annoying - I wanted to reach through the screen and slap her...
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He thought on homeland, the big timber, the air thin and chill all the year long. Tulip poplars so big through the trunk they put you in mind of locomotives set on end. He thought of getting home and building him a cabin on Cold Mountain so high that not a soul but the nighthawks passing across the clouds in autumn could hear his sad cry. Of living a life so quiet he would not need ears. And if Ada would go with him, there might be the hope, so far off in the distance he did not even really see it, that in time his despair might be honed off to a point so fine and thin that it would be nearly the same as vanishing.
-- Charles Frazier, Cold Mountain

 

[Chuck C]

I'm with the guys who like the film. If fact, I'm watchin it now!
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Chuck
http://www.hometheaterinsider.com

 

[Seth Paxton]

Every minute of Julie and Brad on screen together was wretched. It was the epitome of bad chemistry. Separately you had a decent film, although once we lose Gandolfini the film just drags on way past a good point to end.
Somewhere in there is a good film, but it's wearing plenty of bad film all over it.
I don't regret watching it, and Sarah and I didn't need to bail out like Edwin and his wife, but it's far from a purchase-quality film.
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[DavidY]

IMO, I thought that The Mexican was one of the better DVDs that I have watched recently (or maybe I haven't watched very many). Sure it's got some dull moments, but it was good overall....better than what I had expected. To each his own I guess.
Dave

 

[DonMac]

I think The Mexican is great and one of the best comedies of the year, although I can understand drastically different reactions to it because it was a "Quirky Comedy" which is a genre without universal appeal (in fact, I usually don't like most quirky comedies I see - for ex. I hated Waking Ned Devine, a quirky comedy that most critics loved).
The best parts in the film were the scenes with the various versions of the story of the Mexican gun as well as all of the predicaments Brad Pitt kept getting into. I also thought the deleted scenes were some of the best I've seen on any DVD yet and they, for the most part, really added a lot to the film (I particularly liked the conclusion of the subplot featuring his handcuffed friend and the shop owner). The only real drawback to the film was the miscast Julia Roberts, who is shrill and rather annoying in a lot of her scenes (of course, I've never understood her popularity anyway). But it's actually more of a Brad Pitt film than a Julia Roberts vehicle and I've recommend the film to all of my friends.
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"It is the customary fate of new truths to begin as heresies and to end as superstitions." - T. H. Huxley

 

[Rich Malloy]

I couldn't even sit through the trailer.
I wonder whether Serendipity will be as bad? That's another trailer that had me reaching for the vomit pail.

 

[Rob Tomlin]

I had heard so many bad reviews, I wasnt expecting much. As a result, I was pleasantly surprised. I loved the combination action/romance/comedy. I enjoy movies that show some originality, which this movie definitely did. It was definitely worth renting.
The fact the DVD transfer and sound were excellent, made it even more enjoyable!

 

[Eric Bass]

I thought it was great. Course unlike 95% of movie buffs I do not have a particular bias against either Pitt or Roberts. Sure it was dumb, it never tried to be anything but that. It's one thing when a film clearly tries to make an impression as a well thought out piece of art and quite another when a movie is clearly only for fun. Who cares whether or not it had great performances or chemistry or a deep plot?

 

[Patrick Wilmes]

I comletely agree with Allen and Mitty.I liked this movie alot more than I thought I would.I also think the overall presentation(sound and picture)also added to my enjoying it so much.