A man tries to transport an ancient gun called The Mexican, believed to carry a curse, back across the border, while his girlfriend pressures him to give up his criminal ways.A man tries to transport an ancient gun called The Mexican, believed to carry a curse, back across the border, while his girlfriend pressures him to give up his criminal ways.A man tries to transport an ancient gun called The Mexican, believed to carry a curse, back across the border, while his girlfriend pressures him to give up his criminal ways.
- Awards
- 3 wins & 2 nominations total
- Emanuelle
- (as Maira Serbulo)
- Gunsmith's Assistant
- (as Alan Cianguerotti)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe casting choice of James Gandolfini as Leroy was Julia Roberts' idea.
- GoofsWhen Winston shoots the well-dressed black man in the hotel room the gun he is using does not have a suppressor on it. Yet the weapon is making the sound of a suppressed pistol. When he shoots the final shot for the kill you see this perfectly.
- Quotes
Leroy: I have to ask you a question... and it's an important one so, I want you to think about the answer before you give it to me. Okay?
Samantha: Okay
Leroy: When two people love each other - Really... Love each other - but they just can't get it together, when do you get to that point where enough is enough?
Samantha: [mouth agape, stunned look, realizing he's talking about her] Tha?... oh, well... that's... you know... um... you know it's Over when... okay, I have, like, these psychosomatic, insomniatic manifestations of... uh, well here's the thing about me: I'm a product of my emotions, versus being a product of my environment, like HIM, which he is, exactly, just THAT, environmental... uh uh I need sunshine to grow; that's who I am, and uh with the projection of the... I have goals
[pause, smiles, nods to indicate she's done]
Leroy: That's your answer?
Samantha: Yah
Leroy: That's not right. I mean, there's a right answer here, but that's not it
Samantha: [exhales sharply]
Leroy: Look, in my business you're surrounded by loneliness, and finality. Now I don't care what your take is on an afterlife, when people die, it's scary. And they go alone. Now the people that I send off, that have experienced love, they're a little less scared. I mean they're still scared, but there's... a calmness to 'em, and I think that comes from the knowledge that somebody, somewhere loved 'em, and cared for 'em, and will miss 'em. Now I see that from time to time, and I am awed by it. I don't think I'd be telling you any of this if it wasn't for Frank. Anyway, it's a loaded question. Look, when two people love each other - Totally, TRUTHfully, all the way Love each other - the answer to that question is simple, especially in your case. When do you get to that point where enough is enough? Never... Never
- Crazy creditsAt the very end of the credits, Samantha whispers "I love you, Jerry".
- ConnectionsFeatured in HBO First Look: The Making of 'The Mexican' (2001)
- SoundtracksEl Cable
Written by Mario Carniello
Performed by Esquivel
Courtesy of The RCA Music Group, a Unit of BMG Entertainment
Jerry (Brad Pitt) is one of the most inept criminals in history. Five years ago he crashed into the back of a crime lord's car and, as a result, found himself working off the accident by running errands. Jerry's last retrieval before retirement involves skipping the border into Mexico, finding a rare and beautifully crafted pistol (The Mexican), returning it to Margolese (Gene Hackman) and walking away from everything happily. But Jerry's girlfriend, Samantha (Julia Roberts), is tired of Jerry's continual lying and criminal feats, so she dumps him and heads for Las Vegas.
After arriving in Mexico unscathed, Jerry soon finds himself at the wrath of thugs, murderers and hit men intent on stealing The Mexican from him. Meanwhile, Samantha finds herself taken hostage by a gay hit man with a heart named Leroy (James Gandolfini of "Get Shorty" and TV's "The Sopranos"), who -- by following all of the Hollywood cliches -- is an amiable, likable guy who wouldn't harm a fly.
The advertising for "The Mexican" had it all wrong. The studios advertised it as a sweet, funny comedy starring two of Hollywood's biggest stars. The major cop-out is that Pitt and Roberts share most of the film far apart from each other -- which isn't a huge problem anyway, as it provides a pleasant twist on the repetitive buddy formula. But the movie's twisting, turning, violent, harsh style soon grows weary -- especially as the second hour draws nearer. The end almost redeems the rest of the film, but not quite.
"The Mexican" is primarily interested in doing things that have already been done before, such as culture clashing. Take, for instance, the scene where Jerry spends a good minute or so trying to tell a band of traveling hombres that he needs a ride to the nearest town. Somehow, Jerry confuses "carro" for "deniro" and the driver's eyes suddenly light up. "Robert De Niro?" he asks with a big gap-toothed grin. Another joke that indicates foreign countries know more about Hollywood than actual language. Har-har. It'd be funny if it hadn't been done before.
If you're looking for something harsh, "The Mexican" may very well be too sweet. And vice versa. The movie is too wish-washy -- sometimes it wants to be the next gritty comedy ("Trainspotting") and sometimes it's aiming for cute gimmicks and completely silly characters.
And then, even worse than trying jokes and failing, "The Mexican" never even strives to give us funny moments. In that scene where Jerry tries to hail a ride to the next town, the punchline is never delivered. All road travel movies are about confusion, usually resulting in two people misunderstanding each other. What should have happened is this: Jerry has a hard time explaining to the Mexican driver that he wants a ride. Finally, they both understand each other, and Jerry thinks everything is OK, but soon finds himself being left in the dust by the car, which continues driving on. Because confusion is funny, and "The Mexican" never understands this. That is one of its most fundamental flaws.
- MovieAddict2016
- Mar 30, 2004
- Permalink
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Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Người Mexico
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $57,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $66,845,033
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $20,108,829
- Mar 4, 2001
- Gross worldwide
- $147,845,033
- Runtime2 hours 3 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1