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Movies / On DVD / Once Upon a Time in Mexico
Once Upon a Time in Mexico

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Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003)

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Reviews Counted:158

Fresh:108

Rotten:50

Average Rating:6.3/10

Consensus: Violent, pulpy, loopy fun, with Depp stealing the show.

Runtime: 1 hr 42 mins

Genre: Action/Adventure

Synopsis: The saga of the mythic guitar-slinging hero, El Mariachi (Antonio Banderas), continues in Robert Rodriguez’s bravura action epic Once Upon a Time in Mexico. The new adventure is set against a... The saga of the mythic guitar-slinging hero, El Mariachi (Antonio Banderas), continues in Robert Rodriguez’s bravura action epic Once Upon a Time in Mexico. The new adventure is set against a backdrop of revolution, greed and revenge. Haunted and scarred by tragedy, El Mariachi (Banderas) has retreated into a life of isolation. He is forced out of hiding when Sands (Johnny Depp), a corrupt CIA agent, recruits the reclusive hero to sabotage an assassination plot against the president of Mexico, which has been conceived by the evil cartel kingpin Barrillo (Willem Dafoe). But El Mariachi also has his own reasons for returning – blood revenge. The desperado returns with his two trusted sidekicks Lorenzo (Enrique Iglesias) and Fideo (Marco Leonardi). And the legend of El Mariachi reaches new heights of excitement and adventure. Columbia Pictures and Dimension Films Present Once Upon a Time in Mexico starring Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek and Johnny Depp. Also starring Mickey Rourke, Eva Mendes, Danny Trejo, Enrique Iglesias, Marco Leonardi, Cheech Marin, Rubén Blades and Willem Dafoe. Once Upon a Time in Mexico was written and directed by Robert Rodriguez. The film was produced by Elizabeth Avellán, Carlos Gallardo and Robert Rodriguez. The director of photography, editor, production designer and composer is Robert Rodriguez. The costume designer is Graciela Mazón. Once Upon a Time in Mexico will be released on September 12, 2003. The film has been rated R by the MPAA for strong violence and language. [More]

Starring: Antonio Banderas, Johnny Depp, Salma Hayek, Ruben Blades

Starring: Antonio Banderas, Johnny Depp, Salma Hayek, Ruben Blades, Willem Dafoe, Enrique Iglesias, Marco Leonardi, Mickey Rourke, Danny Trejo, Cheech Marin, Eva Mendes

Director: Robert Rodriguez

Director: Robert Rodriguez
Screenwriter: Robert Rodriguez
Producer: Robert Rodriguez
Composer: Robert Rodriguez
Studio: Columbia Pictures

[See More Credits]

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Reviews for Once Upon a Time in Mexico

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81 - 100 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Like sped-up Sergio Leone, an awesome comic book epic of a burrito Western.

Full Review Source: Montreal Film Journal | comment Comment
09/12/03
Kevin N. Laforest
Kevin N. Laforest
Montreal Film Journal

Antonio Banderas took my breath away again. Sleek and swift as a panther, he projects the charisma and magnetism of an old-time movie star.

Full Review Source: ReelTalk Movie Reviews | comment Comment
09/12/03
Betty Jo Tucker
Betty Jo Tucker
ReelTalk Movie Reviews

As Rodriguez' hubris has swelled to Olympian proportions, so also have his films become hopelessly mired in adolescent exhibitionism.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
09/12/03
Wade Major
Wade Major
Boxoffice Magazine

Moves with uncanny cool; it has a strange lukewarm energy that most Hollywood action films lack.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner | comment Comment
09/12/03
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
San Francisco Examiner

A thrilling, entertaining spectacle which easily lives up to the legacy of its predecessors and proves that the director’s time spent with the Spy Kids franchise hasn’t diminished his ability to create effective adult-level thrills.

Full Review Source: FilmStew.com | comment Comment
09/12/03
Todd Gilchrist
Todd Gilchrist
FilmStew.com

Depp, a mere two months after his scene-stealing turn in Pirates of the Caribbean, once again is the best thing about a very silly movie.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
09/12/03
Michael O'Sullivan
Michael O'Sullivan
Washington Post

A whiz-bang kick in the pants.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
09/12/03
Ann Hornaday
Ann Hornaday
Washington Post

It does have Depp to buoy it up just long enough to keep audience interest alive until the film gets to the meat of the story -- the action.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
09/12/03
Jeff Vice
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

It's at once busy and lacklustre, intricately plotted yet indifferently paced, handsomely mounted but made from plastic.

Full Review Source: Toronto Star | comment Comment
09/12/03
Geoff Pevere
Geoff Pevere
Toronto Star

Rodriguez ... has taken his work in 1995's Desperado, Mexico's precursor, and blown it up to mammoth, thrilling proportions.

Full Review Source: South Florida Sun-Sentinel | comment Comment
09/12/03
Phoebe Flowers
Phoebe Flowers
South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Whenever Rodriguez is in a Fairbanks mood, Mexico delivers.

Full Review Source: Seattle Times | comment Comment
09/12/03
John Hartl
John Hartl
Seattle Times

Despite the movie's dark humor, violence and the occasional nonvoluntary facial surgery that will drive away the queasy, Once Upon a Time in Mexico is the most crowd-pleasing film in the series.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
09/12/03
Peter Hartlaub
Peter Hartlaub
San Francisco Chronicle

Goes nowhere, furiously.

Full Review Source: San Diego Union-Tribune | comment Comment
09/12/03
David Elliott
David Elliott
San Diego Union-Tribune

Rodriguez's films have always been witty, but none more than this crazy confection.

Full Review Source: Rochester Democrat and Chronicle | comment Comment
09/12/03
Jack Garner
Jack Garner
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

Feels like a bullfight on acid or a dish of carne asade peppered with just the right comedic seasoning.

Full Review Source: Reel.com | comment Comment
09/12/03
Scott Huber
Scott Huber
Reel.com

If Once Upon A Time in Mexico is a spaghetti Western, it's Chef Boy-Ar-Dee.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Daily News | comment Comment
09/12/03
Gary Thompson
Gary Thompson
Philadelphia Daily News

A winking exercise in actors acting cool and the amoral joys of trigger- happiness.

Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel | comment Comment
09/12/03
Roger Moore
Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel

You ride along with a movie like this with a big, dumb grin on your face and no guilt.

Full Review Source: Oregonian | comment Comment
09/12/03
Shawn Levy
Shawn Levy
Oregonian

Rodriguez's movie aspires to trashy grandeur, and achieves it.

Full Review Source: Newark Star-Ledger | comment Comment
09/12/03
Bob Campbell
Bob Campbell
Newark Star-Ledger

A heady mix of Tarantino-esque pulp.

Full Review Source: New York Post | comment Comment
09/12/03
Megan Lehmann
Megan Lehmann
New York Post
 
 
81 - 100 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 >> >|
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Latest News for Once Upon a Time in Mexico

May 08, 2007: Banderas Denies "Sin City 2" Gig
Just because he's worked with Robert Rodriguez a half-dozen times already, that doesn't mean Antonio Banderas is a lock to appear in "Sin City 2" -- despite what... More...

April 06, 2006: Critical Consensus: Take Or Leave This "Lead,: An Odd "Number," "Benchwarmers"
This week at the movies, we explore the joys of dance ("Take the Lead"), mistaken identity ("Lucky Number Slevin"), our national pastime ("The... More...

September 18, 2002: Film fans know Robert Rodriguez as the man who made the inexpensive indie hit, 'El Mariachi' -- In 2003 he brings badass guitar cases back into fashion with 'Once Upon a Time in Mexico,' the third installment of the Mariachi legend. Opens in new window
More...

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