The Mexican (2001) DreamWorks/Comedy-Adventure RT: 123 minutes Rated R (violence and language) Director: Gore Verbinski Screenplay: J.H. Wyman Music: Alan Silvestri Cinematography: Darius Wolski Release date: March 2, 2001 (US) Cast: Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, James Gandolfini, Bob Balaban, J.K. Simmons, Sherman Augustus, Michael Cerveris, David Krumholtz, Castulo Guerra, Gene Hackman. Box Office: $66.8M (US)/$147.8M (World)
Rating: ***
If Sam Peckinpah ever made a rom-com, it would probably turn out something like The Mexican, a wildly uneven but entertaining comedy-adventure starring Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts who don’t share all that much screen time together. They may be the stars, but they’re not the best thing about The Mexican. No, that would be James Gandolfini (The Sopranos) as a gay hitman named Leroy. He’s the one who shares the most screen time with Roberts and they’re very good together. It’s this relationship that gives the movie its edge. It’s what sets it apart from the countless other rom-com/road trip movies that fade from memory an hour after seeing them.
The phrase “it’s complicated” definitely applies to Jerry (Pitt) and Sam (Roberts). They argue constantly. She believes he’s not fully committed to their relationship. When Jerry backs out of their trip to Las Vegas, she blows her top, throwing his belongings in the street while telling him how selfish he is. He has good reason for bailing. Because of a car accident that put a major crime figure in jail for five years, Jerry (who caused the accident) has to run errands for his second-in-command (Balaban, Ghost World) until the debt is paid off. The problem is he usually botches his assignments. You see, Jerry isn’t the brightest bulb in the pack. He has one last chance or else he’ll be killed. The prospect of his untimely death doesn’t move Sam in the slightest. She tells Jerry if he takes the assignment (as if he has a choice), they’re through. He gets on the plane and she hits the road to Vegas.
Jerry’s latest task should be easy enough. He’s ordered to go to Mexico to retrieve an antique handgun (the “Mexican” of the title) and bring it back to the States. Naturally, things go horribly awry and Jerry spends a lot of time trying to regain possession of the gun. It either gets stolen or taken from him by various persons. He can’t seem to catch a break.
Meanwhile, on the road to Vegas, Sam gets kidnapped by Leroy. That is, after he saves her from being killed by a well-dressed black man (NFL star Augustus) at a rest stop facility. For the purposes of this review, it’s not important why he kidnaps her. However, Sam knows it has something to do with whatever Jerry is involved in at the present time which only makes her madder at him. She complains to Leroy about Jerry and their imperfect relationship. As it turns out, he’s not only a good listener; he has good advice to offer. Then she figures out he’s gay. Leroy, in turn, opens up to Sam about his insecurities about his sexuality and appeal to other men. It’s the oddest captor-captive relationship I’ve ever seen.
I have to be honest. I found Roberts’ character shrill and irritating. She blames Jerry for all their problems as a couple and while he’s partly to blame, she’s not completely guiltless. It takes two to tangle. Sam either can’t see past her own needs to realize Jerry’s life is in danger or she just doesn’t care. Either way, she’s the kind of girlfriend most guys try to avoid. Her character becomes slightly more bearable as the movie progresses. Pitt, on the other hand, has some nice comedy chops. He’s funny as dimwitted, luckless Jerry. He’s the kind of dope who thinks speaking Spanish entails putting the letter “o” at the end of words. Again, being honest, I can see where it would be easy to lose patience with this guy. I can see how his lack of intelligence, luck and common sense would get on Sam’s nerves. We, the audience, can laugh because we don’t have to live with it. So then, the events of The Mexican serve as a radical form of relationship therapy. Okay, that’s amusing.
Directed by Gore Verbinski (the Pirates of the Caribbean movies), The Mexican has some clever touches. There are a few different versions of the legend attached to “The Mexican”. Each time a character tells their version, the picture turns to sepia like an old-time movie. There’s also a funny running bit about a vicious dog that comes with the old, dilapidated truck Jerry buys from a Mexican peasant.
The problem with The Mexican is that Verbinski can’t decide on a tone. Sometimes it’s a rom-com; other times, it’s a violent South-of-the-border action flick. It’s an uneasy mix that sometimes struggles to find its footing. It also runs about a half-hour too long. The Mexican has its share of flaws, not the least of which is the two leads not making all that believable a couple, but I still liked it. It’s on the weaker end of the three-star spectrum.
