The law of diminishing returns has never been quite so obvious as it is in Robert Rodriguez’s trilogy of Mexican Mariachi mayhem. He essentially made the same film three times in the space of eleven years, but never bettered his now legendary low-budget feature debut. The Mexico Trilogy (‘El Mariachi’, ‘Desperado’, and ‘Once Upon A Time in Mexico’) has been collected together in various DVD and Blu-ray releases over the years, but this bumper release from Arrow Video is without question the most comprehensive.
It feels like something of a departure from their usual output, but as you would expect from Arrow, they’ve pulled together a very decent package, with hours of extras, both exclusive and from the archives. It’s a shame they could only provide a 4K upgrade for ‘Desperado’ with the other two still in 1080p. Presumably this is a rights issue with the studio, but it’s something you should be aware of before dropping £50 on an item that is widely promoted as a Limited Edition 4K boxset.
The first disc in the set is dedicated to ‘El Mariachi’ – a landmark film in independent cinema. Rodriguez famously directed the film which launched his career on a shoestring budget of $7000, and the end result is a testament to his creativity and resourcefulness. In true gonzo style he performed nearly every crew role on the film, and paved the way for a wave of indie filmmakers in the 1990s and beyond.
The story follows a wandering Mariachi musician (Carlos Gallardo) who is mistaken for a dangerous hitman who carries his weapons in a guitar case. It’s a perfect set up for a lean, mean, action thriller. It’s obviously rough around the edges, when you consider it cost next to nothing, but you can tell this is a proper filmmaker at work. Rodriguez arrived on the scene practically fully formed. It’s so jarring to look at this dynamic piece of filmmaking now and then see how his career played out.
With smart camerawork, slick editing, inventive sound design, and great use of voiceover, ‘El Mariachi’ squeezes everything out of its minimal resources. In the titular role, Gallardo is excellent, bringing real heart to the carnage. Funny, violent, romantic, tragic, and barely a tick over 80 minutes. What more could you want from a film?
This new release comes with a directors commentary by Robert Rodriguez. ‘Big Vision, Low Budget’ is a newly filmed interview with Rodriguez on how his groundbreaking debut feature came to be. ’The Original Mariachi’ is a brand new interview with Carlos Gallardo. Next up is ‘A Band of Misfits’ which is a newly produced featurette on the music in the film, featuring interview with Eric Guthrie, Christie Knudson, Alvaro Rodriguez, and Marc Trujillo.
‘Ten Minute Film School’ is an archival piece produced and narrated by the director where he talks about how he produced ‘El Mariachi’ for only $7000. ‘Bedhead’ is a funny little short film by Rodriguez from 1991 starring his siblings Rebecca and David. Finally, the disc is rounded out with the theatrical trailer and TV spots.
Disc Two brings us on to ‘Desperado’ from 1995. The one film in this boxset which is in 4K UHD. Part sequel, part remake, but with a bigger budget and hotter actors. Which is a pretty decent formula in all fairness. The film is undeniably cool, drenched in the atmosphere of a Neo-Western. If you want nothing more than hyper-stylish gun fights, comic-book violence, and red hot sexiness, ‘Desperado’ more than delivers the goods.
Antonio Banderas is now the mysterious and lethal Mariachi, on a quest for vengeance against a ruthless drug lord. Rodriguez significantly ups the ante with ‘Desperado’, with a bigger budget, slicker production values, and a star-studded cast, which includes Steve Buscemi, Joaquim de Almeida, and Quentin Tarantino. The film also introduced the world to an unfathomably beautiful Salma Hayek. It’s not as good as ‘El Mariachi’ but it’s still a rollicking good time, and the 4K upgrade is terrific.
This disc also comes with a new commentary by the director, and a brand new interview with him too. There are also brand new interviews with producer Bill Borden, sound co-ordinator Steve Davison, and special effects co-ordinator Bob Shelley. There is also an interview with filmmaker Gareth Evans who discusses how Robert Rodriguez inspired a generation of upcoming filmmakers, including himself.
‘Ten More Minutes’ is the follow up to his hugely influential Ten Minute Film School. This clip sees Rodriguez talking through how they shot the barroom shootout sequence. ‘Morena de mi Corazón’ is the full musical performance from the opening credits but without the on screen text. As with disc one, there are trailers and TV spots. Disc three includes all of this and the film, but on Blu-ray instead of UHD.
Disc Four is where it all goes a bit pear-shaped. Having built on the success of ‘Desperado’ with ‘From Dusk till Dawn’ and ‘The Faculty’ Rodriguez then went on to make three ‘Spy Kids’ movies back to back. All of which turned a profit. Which is presumably why Sony gave him $30m to write, direct, produce, shoot, and edit the concluding part of the Mexico Trilogy – ‘Once Upon a Time in Mexico’. He also wrote the score, was the production designer, and visual effects supervisor on the film.
This is all fine on a $7000 indie. On a production this big, it is indulgent beyond belief and perfectly sums up this bloated mess of a film. From the second it fades in on Johnny Depp in his purple sunglasses, you just know we’re on rocky terrain. More sprawling and convoluted than its predecessors, ‘Once Upon a Time in Mexico’ sees Banderas return as the Mariachi, once again seeking revenge against a powerful enemy.
While the film boasts a lavish cast and excessively stylised visuals, it suffers from an overly complicated plot and a lack of focus. Antonio Banderas’s Mariachi, feels sidelined in favour of Depp’s eccentric CIA agent, whose annoying performance overshadows the film’s emotional core. Despite its action-packed sequences, the film ultimately feels more like a chaotic jumble than a satisfying finale.
As with the other films in this set, Rodriguez has provided a commentary track. ‘The Revolution will be Digitised’ is a brand new interview with Rodriguez talking about how he embraced new technology to make the final film in his Mariachi trilogy. The most notable element of this interview is where he admits that they were shooting fast to get it complete before a Screen Actors Guild strike, and he rattled off the script in a week. It all makes sense now.
‘Troublemaking’ is a brand new interview with visual effects editor Ethan Manquis. This is followed up by 7-minutes of deleted scenes. ‘Ten Minutes Flick School’ sees Rodriguez’s trilogy of instructional clips conclude with this video discussing the possibilities of the digital format. ’Inside Troublemaker Studios’ has Rodriguez giving us a tour of the facilities at his studio in Austin.
‘Ten Minute Cooking School’ is a fun little video with Rodriguez providing instructions on how to cook Puerco Pibil. ‘Film is Dead: an evening with Robert Rodriguez’ is a presentation given by Rodriguez in LA in July 2003. ‘The Antiheroes Journey’ is an archival featurette on the arc of the Mariachi throughout the trilogy. ‘The Good, the Bad, and the Bloody’ is a short featurette on the violent special effects in the film. The disc is rounded off with a selection of trailers.
‘El Mariachi’ – 4/5
‘Desperado’ – 3/5
‘Once Upon a Time in Mexico’ – 2/5
Special Features – 4/5
Cast: Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek, Carlos Gallardo, Johnny Depp, Willem Dafoe, Joaquim de Almeida, Steve Buscemi Director: Robert Rodriguez Writer: Robert Rodriguez Released By: Arrow Films Certificate:18 Duration:VariousRelease Date: 26 August 2024
