Review of Desperado (1995) by Victor T — 29 May 2015

After the surprise hit that his directorial debut represented, Robert Rodriguez decided to continue the adventures of El Mariachi but now counting with a bigger budget. Is this sequel better than the original?

After the events of "El Mariachi", our protagonist continues to travel looking for vengeance and now his target is a drug lord known as "Bucho".

"El Mariachi" was a solid, entertaining and promising directorial debut that followed the typical western formula so it had potential for improvement but unfortunately "Desperado" couldn't fulfill this task. "Desperado" counts with Rodriguez´s over the top but inventive directing, Banderas works as cliché protagonist, the cinematography is better, the location is beautiful, a campy vibe that manages to be amusing throughout the film´s running time, and over the top violence that gives this film some style. The big issue I have with "Desperado" is that it mostly follows the story and formula of its predecessor: The same plot points, replicates several sequences, the action is shot exactly the same, a score that feels improvised, stereotypical characters, the fast pacing, acting that is nothing great but is incredibly fun to watch, creative and over the top action scenes and the same humor. And while the majority of all those elements are improved due to the bigger budget, it lacks the indie charm that made "El Mariachi" so memorable and it is instead replaced with a over the top action vibe that is so laughable and ridiculous. Another problem this sequel suffers is the fact that the plot is irrelevant as the film is more focused on the action sequences rather than telling a logical, cohesive and well written story.

"Desperado" is a ridiculous film that feels like a remake of "El Mariachi" but it still manages to be incredibly fun, even though it is an inferior film. If you like action films/westerns you will like this film more than I do. A fun and entertaining but mindless film.