February 10, 2004
-
¿Qué quiéres en la vidá?
Meet my new favorite filmmaker, Robert Rodriguez. As I’m writing this, he is speaking about filmmaking technology off to my right, on screen, on the PS2 monitor, on DVD, in the “extra features” that came with Once Upon a Time in Mexico, which Greyfox rented tonight. We watched Open Range last night (I’ve been in a Western mood, and Greyfox has been indulging me.). It was an excellent movie–hell, more than excellent, but words fail me–filled with credible versimilitude, but it just didn’t grab any of us the way this flick did tonight. Old Kevin Costner could learn a thing or three from young Robert R.
The question I ask above, “What do you want in life?” is a recurrent theme in the film. This flick is the third in a trilogy that started with El Mariachi and Desperado. My style of movie-watching is different from Greyfox’s. I either hear of one that sounds interesting, see a preview of something that catches my eye along with some other movie, or see it on the rack at the video store, and go for it. Greyfox checks out the things he sees at the video store: he goes online, reads reviews (lets other people’s opinions influence whether he views a video or not, which is something I’d never do) and checks out the filmmakers’ filmographies. That’s how we found out about the prequels.
I didn’t need to be sold on the movie. The title was enough for me. I love Mexico and many things Mexican. It’s a karmic thing: I spent a series of lifetimes in Mesoamerica, Mexico and the American Southwest. Some of my descendants are still there. The fact that Johnny Depp stars in it was a heap of sweet icing on the cake. Love that man! I didn’t even know until his first scene tonight that Antonio Banderas plays El Mariachi himself. That’s another whole layer of cake and icing for me.
At first, Greyfox had just told me about the movie and asked if I wanted to see it. Before I could answer, Doug spoke up with an enthusiastic request to see it. I guess he’d heard some buzz somewhere about it. Greyfox’s idea was to try and find the first two movies in the trilogy before seeing this one. We did try, last week in Wasilla, to find El Mariachi. The local general store/video rental was supposed to, according to the owner, have Desperado. Later we learned from his wife that he’d been mistaken.
Blockbuster didn’t have El Mariachi, either. The cute young clerk (Greyfox didn’t agree that the chubby little guy with the odd facial hair was cute, but…) told us the movie is in Spanish with English subtitles, and they don’t carry it. So, after learning that Desperado wasn’t available, my conservative soulmate (opposites attract) decided to go ahead and rent Once Upon a Time in Mexico.
The first thing that caught my eye and piqued my imagination, was a production credit that flashed onscreen: Troublemaker Studios. “My kinda guys,” I thought. Now I’ve learned that the studio used to be R.R.’s garage. It’s where they made the Spy Kids series, and Once Upon…. Before that, before he turned his garage into a high-tech studio, this guy made El Mariachi someplace else, reportedly (reported by Johnny Depp, who was greatly impressed by the fact) for $7,000.
Next thing to grab me was another credit: “Shot, cut and scored by Robert Rodriguez.” “This man,” I thought, “is really an auteur,” that fancy word Greyfox has taught me, for someone who does it all. Indeed he does, and he cooks too. In the “Ten Minute Cooking School” on this disk (along with a “Ten Minute Film School” and other goodies), he says that not being able to cook is like not being able to fuck. I agree wholeheartedly. Anyone who can’t cook and won’t or can’t fuck is wasting oxygen.
Okay, I’m impressed. That much ought to be obvious by now. See this movie. It’s rich, visually, in mythic theme and metaphor, in great music and bloody violence… it’s even romantic. I intend to go to Amazon next and see if I can order the first two flicks in the trilogy.
Comments (5)
I was hoping to see more Salma Hayek, but it turns out she’s only a flashback, and her stunt double has more screen time than she does. The rest of it’s great, though.. In the 21st century, it turns out, El Mariachi is Zorro, and the CIA is the corrupt Colonial government. I just wish they had worked in a Zapatista angle, too, but that might have been a little too much.
Speaking of Zorro… Banderas starred in ‘The Mask Of Zorro,’ and is making a sequel now. Banderas is the archetypal Mexican hero for two centuries running.
Yep, I loved “Once Upon a Time. . . ” too. Visually, outrageous, surreal. Love those super-saturated, digitized colours. I am reminded of a cartoon I saw in Playboy in the sixties–showed this guy in a house watching TV–outside was a spectacular sunset, mountains, a waterfall–but the guy only had eyes for his boob tube, exclaiming “This is magnificent! I’ll never watch real life again.”
Of course back then, color TV was kind of a big deal.
I’m not much of a movie person, but my style of selection is like your’s, Kathy. Nine times out of ten, the “thumbs up (or down)”/number of stars/whatever rating system is exactly the opposite of my opinion of any given film.
Have you seen antonio in Original Sin w/ Angelina Jolie and Interview w/ a Vampire -movie made from the Anne Rice novel of the same name.
I think we have El Mariachi in our blockbuster..I need to go look, but we have a large Hispanic population so we get a lot of those movies.
Desperado remains one of my favorite films- I saw it years ago when it first came out as the “english version” of El Mariachi. (There has been some confusion to whether they are two seperate prequels, or an english version remake) Loved it so much I bought the damn soundtrack to it. Antonio is awesomely sexy and rugged and mythic in it, and I am sure you will enjoy it when you get to see it. I have not see Once Upon a Time in Mexico yet, but I have been DYING to. This sequel to one of my favorite movies of all time has Antonio and Johnny in it, both so phenomenal, and well…I just don’t know why I haven’t seen it yet, lol. Anyway, get yer grubby paws on Desperado- it’s definitely worth it…and the soundtrack is pretty good, too.
By the way, the C-section went fine, and of course I am sore as hell. (understatement) Juliet weighed in at 9lbs. 6oz. She had lots of dark hair with some reddish highlights in it, and she is comically chubby. This girl’s temples are even fat. Glad to be home, and the girlie is great. Wish I friggin felt better. Here’s to a speedy recovery and a viewing of once Upon A Time in Mexico….