Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003)

Hitman "El Mariachi" becomes involved in international espionage involving a psychotic CIA agent and a corrupt Mexican general.

Director:

Robert Rodriguez

Writer:

Robert Rodriguez

Stars:

Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek, Johnny Depp

3 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Antonio Banderas	...	El Mariachi
Salma Hayek	...	Carolina
Johnny Depp	...	Sands
Mickey Rourke	...	Billy
Eva Mendes	...	Ajedrez
Danny Trejo	...	Cucuy
Enrique Iglesias	...	Lorenzo
Marco Leonardi	...	Fideo
Cheech Marin	...	Belini
Rubén Blades	...	Jorge FBI
Willem Dafoe	...	Barillo
Gerardo Vigil	...	Marquez
Pedro Armendáriz Jr.	...	El Presidente (as Pedro Armendariz)
Julio Oscar Mechoso	...	Advisor
Tito Larriva	...	Cab Driver

Storyline

In the third movie of Rodriguez's "Mariachi" trilogy, a Mexican drug lord pretends to overthrow the Mexican government, and is connected to a corrupt CIA agent who at that time, demands retribution from his worst enemy to carry out the drug lord's uprising against the government.

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Plot Keywords:

mariachi | mexican | cia | general | cia agent | 

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Taglines:

The Time Has Come.

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Genres:

Action | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence, and for language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Terra [es]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

12 September 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

El Mariachi 3

Filming Locations:

Guanajuato, Mexico

Box Office

Budget:

$29,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$668,678 (Japan) (5 March 2004)

Gross:

$3,112,845 (Japan) (2 April 2004)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Dimension Films, Troublemaker Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

"Cucuy" or el cucuy is the boogeyman of Latin American cultures.

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Goofs

In the final shootout scene, at the presidential palace, after the general is shot, in both knees and then in the head, he moves his left foot to allow the drug lord to pass by.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Agent Sands: I never heard of him.
Belini: Who?
Agent Sands: The man you recommended.
Belini: The guitar fighter?

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Crazy Credits

After all the credits, we are treated to one last quick image of Agent Sands (Johnny Depp) with no eyes.

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Connections

Featured in Inside Troublemaker Studios (2004)

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Soundtracks

"Yo Te Quiero"
Written and Performed by Marcos Loya
Courtesy of Spindletop Records

User Reviews

Robert, you've done it again

It's got it's flaws, but the good out way the bad and there is no ugly when it comes to this action adventure comedy blast! The action is gritty, the action is spellbinding and the music, well it IS apart of the Mariachi series so, take a wild guess. Antonio Banderas - as great as he is in this flick he takes shotgun to Johnny Depp's lead. Depp as Sands seems like perfect casting and it's a thrill to see a great actor at the top his game. Selma Hayek - sadly - is not in this one as much and it is a sham, but since she was doing Frida we forgive her, and it actually makes for a more compelling and deeper action movie. El is trapped between a rock in a hard place when it comes to saving his people and saving his own neck. Has Robert Rodriguez puts it "It becomes a battle of The Man with No Eyes, The Man with No Face and The Man with a Guitar Case" and it's just that. Willim Dafoe gives a great and chilling performance, Ruben Blades is in top form and Eva Mendes is cold but hot none the less. And all fans of this series are happy to see The Boy in The Yellow Shirt has made his return.