Review of El Mariachi (1993) by Xgary X — 21 Apr 2009
A wandering musician is mistaken for a a gun toting killer with a grudge and finds himself caught between two warring drug gangs. To say Robert Rodriguez' breakthrough film was an achievement is an understatement; this rates alongside Evil Dead as one of the great victories of mind over money.
I have pairs of trainers that look more expensive than this! The photography is a little cheap looking (though no worse than say, Mad Max), the acting rather amateurish and you do seem to spend a lot of the time watching people running around the same streets.
Made for $7,000 and every shot done in one take, the constraints of the budget are obvious, but the director's invention still manages to shine through. At only 80 minutes it has a nice no frills approach but like Evil Dead, it is completely out shined by the director's own big budget re-invention, Desperado.
Well worth a look though, especially for Rodriguez fans and anyone interested in independent cinema.
This review of El Mariachi (1993) was written by Xgary X on 21 Apr 2009.
El Mariachi has generally received positive reviews.
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