Review of El Mariachi (1993) by Compi24 — 05 Nov 2018
It's not entirely true what they say about first impressions. Not only are they anything but "everything," they also aren't always a good indication of what's to come. A lot of directorial debuts don't entirely telegraph the ensuing careers of their respective filmmakers.
Christopher Nolan's "Following" is easily his weakest film -- and it's not even close. Clint Eastwood's "Play Misty For Me" doesn't even flick a booger in the direction of the kinds of heights his career would later transcend to.
And I don't even think we need to talk about James Cameron's "Piranha II." I think you might know where I'm getting with this, but I feel a similar way about this first film from director Robert Rodriguez.
Do I have to take into account that it was made on a shoestring budget? Yes, I do. But surprisingly, it's not the production values that bothered me. It's the personality -- or lack thereof -- that ultimately makes this movie as dull as it ends up being for me.
A lot of characters with limited charisma, speaking in hushed, uninspired tones about some fairly contrived things. It's not a bad movie in any regard, but again, in no way does this signal the kind of filmmaker we'd eventually get from it.
It is simply not the quintessential Robert Rodriguez film.
This review of El Mariachi (1993) was written by Compi24 on 05 Nov 2018.
El Mariachi has generally received positive reviews.
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