Embedded with quirky comedy and soulful romance, this fast-paced tale traces the twists and turns in the life of Jerry Welbach an unlucky young man, who is stuck in a difficult situation with the mafia boss. To add to his woes, he is bombarded by two ultimatums. His mob boss wants him to travel to Mexico to get a priceless antique pistol called "The Mexican" or he will suffer the consequences. The other ultimatum comes from his girlfriend Samantha, who wants him to end his association with the mob.
Jerry figures that being alive, although in trouble with his girlfriend is the better alternative so he heads south of the border. Finding the pistol is easy but getting it home is a whole other matter. The pistol supposedly carries a curse - a curse, Jerry is given every reason to believe, especially when Samantha is held hostage by the gay hit man Leroy, to ensure the safe return of the pistol. Will Jerry succeeded in escaping Mexico with The Mexican and his life intact?
Cast: Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts
Crew: Gore Verbinski (Director), Dariusz Wolski (Director of Photography), Alan Silvestri (Music Director)
Rating: MA (Australia)
Genres: Crime, Adventure, Comedy, Romance
Release Dates: 02 Mar 2001 (India)
Tagline: love with the safety off
Did you know? The apparently vicious "rabid dog" in the back of the truck is actually a Golden Retriever with its fur badly trimmed and dyed to look like a mutt. Read More
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as Jerry Welbach
as Samantha Barzel
Supporting Actress
Supporting Actor
as Bernie Nayman
Supporting Actor
as Joe the Pawnshop Owner
Supporting Actor
Supporting Actress
Supporting Actor
as Beck
Supporting Actress
as Arnold Margolese
as Ted Slocum
as Winston Baldry
Supporting Actor
Supporting Actor
as Frank
Supporting Actor
as Car Thief #1
as Well Dressed Black Man
Direction
Director
First Assistant Director
Second Assistant Director
Production
Producer
Production Company
Co-Producer
Executive Producer
Distribution
Distributor
Camera and Electrical
Director of Photography
Still Photographer
Camera Operator
Key Grip
Grip
Sound
Sound Designer
Sound Re-recording Mixer
Sound Effects Editor
Boom Operator
Art
Production Designer
Art Director
Prop Master
Set Designer
Set Decorator
Set Dresser
Casting
Casting Director
Casting Associate
Casting Assistant
Costume and Wardrobe
Costume Designer
Special Effects
Special Effects Coordinator
Special Effects Technician
Special Effects Studio
Visual Effects
Visual Effects Studio
Visual Effects Coordinator
Visual Effects Artist
Digital Compositor
Film Type:
Feature
Language:
English
Spoken Languages:
Spanish
Colour Info:
Color
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital, DTS, Sony Dynamic Digital Sound
Camera:
Panaflex Gold, Panavision Panaflex
Frame Rate:
24 fps
Aspect Ratio:
2.35:1
Stereoscopy:
No
Taglines:
love with the safety off
Movie Connection(s):
Referenced in: Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... (Hindi)
Filming Locations:
Los Angeles, California
Las Vegas, Nevada
Real de Catorce, San Luis Potosí
Belz Factory Outlet Mall - 7400 Las Vegas Boulevard South, Las Vegas, Nevada
Tunnel Ogarrio, San Luis Potosí
Ventura Blvd., Studio City, Los Angeles, California
McCarran International Airport - 5757 Wayne Newton Boulevard, Las Vegas, Nevada
Summerlin Parkway, Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Real de Catorce, San Luis Potosí
Belz Factory Outlet Mall - 7400 Las Vegas Boulevard South, Las Vegas, Nevada
Tunnel Ogarrio, San Luis Potosí
Ventura Blvd., Studio City, Los Angeles, California
McCarran International Airport - 5757 Wayne Newton Boulevard, Las Vegas, Nevada
Summerlin Parkway, Las Vegas, Nevada
Goofs:
Audio/Video Mismatch
When Winston shoots the well-dressed black man in the hotel room the gun he is using does not have a suppressor on it. Yet the weapon is making the sound of a suppressed pistol. When he shoots the final shot for the kill you see this perfectly.
Audio/Video Mismatch
When driving in the new style Volkswagen Beetle, the engine sound is that of an original, air cooled, rear engine Volkswagen Beetle.
Audio/Video Mismatch
When Jerry initially retrieves his revolver from his luggage before going into the bar to find Beck, he opens the cylinder and a couple of cartridges fall out. In the process of reloading, he spins the cylinder and several clicks are audible. An open cylinder on this type of firearm would spin freely and would not click. (The clicks might be heard as part of the lockup mechanism if the cylinder was spun while closed.)
Continuity
In the bar where he meets Beck, Jerry orders tequila and takes a sip from the shot glass, leaving it a bit over half full. A moment later, just before the bartender drinks it, the shot glass is completely full.
Continuity
When Jerry confronts the men who stole his rental car, one of the men is wearing Jerry's purple sunglasses. Jerry gets irritated and takes them from him. However, before Jerry takes them back, there is a brief shot showing Jerry already wearing them.
Continuity
When Jerry is offered an American car at the Mexican car rental agency he expresses disappointment and is offered an "El Camino" by the rental agent. However, in the next scene we see that several workers draw to see who gets Jerry's business, insofar as to who will allow Jerry to rent their car, but only one of the cars is an El Camino - which in the previous scene was already rented to Jerry.
Continuity
When Jerry is drinking from a bottle of beer he puts it to the left of him on the bench. In another shot, just moments later, the bottle can be seen on the other side of the bench.
Continuity
When approaching the tractor/trailer around the 1.5 hour mark, for some reason the passenger door on the tractor is open, after passing the tractor the door can be seen to be closed in the rear view shot from the El Camino.
Continuity
When Jerry takes the pistol back from the man who stole the el Camino, you can see the rag the pistol's wrapped in fall to the ground when he puts the pistol in his pants pocket. The next cut shows the rag hanging from Jerry's pocket.
Continuity
After Leroy takes Samantha from the mall, her car does not have a rear license plate, a few minutes later when he pulls over because she is feeling ill it has a rear license plate. Additionally, when they are speeding down the freeway after leaving the mall the car has acquired a front license plate.
Crew/Equipment Visible
When Jerry and Sam are driving from the airport to the Mexican hotel towards the end of the film, parts of a camera are reflected in the car window.
Errors in Geography
Toluca City is a large industrial-urban city, 30 minutes by car from Mexico City. It is not a old rural town. Because of its closeness to Mexico City, no airline flies between the two cities.
Errors in Geography
When Leroy and Samantha leave the mall they drive on and on through the desert and end up in downtown Las Vegas at the Plaza Hotel. Maybe they just wanted to do a lot of driving, but in actuality the mall is on Las Vegas Blvd about 15 minutes driving on the strip to get up to the Plaza Hotel.
Factual Mistake
Mexico does not issue vanity license plates in real life. All license plates in Mexico consist of three or four numbers and three letters.
Miscellaneous
In the opening scene, the stop light is clearly red, yet cars are seen going through the light in all lanes.
Revealing Mistakes
The first time Jerry tucks his revolver beneath the dash of the El Camino (while Beck is relieving himself outside the bar), the orientation of the gun would indicate that the right side of the firearm is being shown to the audience; however, the cylinder release is clearly visible, indicating that this is actually the left side of the gun and the shot has been reversed. (Also note that he uses his right hand to stow the revolver but the orientation of the hand, especially the thumb, would indicate a left hand. This is further evidence of a flopped shot.)
Continuity
About two thirds into the movie, we see Sam and Winston (false Leroy) have breakfast at a diner after having partied in the hotel room the night before. Winston shares with Samantha, how his new lover, whom they picked up on the way, found out about what he does for a living by finding the gun that Winston hid before they had started to party. The night before, we see Winston slide the gun under the cushion of an armchair. However, when he tells Samantha that story, he talks about having hid the gun between towels in the bathroom.
When Winston shoots the well-dressed black man in the hotel room the gun he is using does not have a suppressor on it. Yet the weapon is making the sound of a suppressed pistol. When he shoots the final shot for the kill you see this perfectly.
Audio/Video Mismatch
When driving in the new style Volkswagen Beetle, the engine sound is that of an original, air cooled, rear engine Volkswagen Beetle.
Audio/Video Mismatch
When Jerry initially retrieves his revolver from his luggage before going into the bar to find Beck, he opens the cylinder and a couple of cartridges fall out. In the process of reloading, he spins the cylinder and several clicks are audible. An open cylinder on this type of firearm would spin freely and would not click. (The clicks might be heard as part of the lockup mechanism if the cylinder was spun while closed.)
Continuity
In the bar where he meets Beck, Jerry orders tequila and takes a sip from the shot glass, leaving it a bit over half full. A moment later, just before the bartender drinks it, the shot glass is completely full.
Continuity
When Jerry confronts the men who stole his rental car, one of the men is wearing Jerry's purple sunglasses. Jerry gets irritated and takes them from him. However, before Jerry takes them back, there is a brief shot showing Jerry already wearing them.
Continuity
When Jerry is offered an American car at the Mexican car rental agency he expresses disappointment and is offered an "El Camino" by the rental agent. However, in the next scene we see that several workers draw to see who gets Jerry's business, insofar as to who will allow Jerry to rent their car, but only one of the cars is an El Camino - which in the previous scene was already rented to Jerry.
Continuity
When Jerry is drinking from a bottle of beer he puts it to the left of him on the bench. In another shot, just moments later, the bottle can be seen on the other side of the bench.
Continuity
When approaching the tractor/trailer around the 1.5 hour mark, for some reason the passenger door on the tractor is open, after passing the tractor the door can be seen to be closed in the rear view shot from the El Camino.
Continuity
When Jerry takes the pistol back from the man who stole the el Camino, you can see the rag the pistol's wrapped in fall to the ground when he puts the pistol in his pants pocket. The next cut shows the rag hanging from Jerry's pocket.
Continuity
After Leroy takes Samantha from the mall, her car does not have a rear license plate, a few minutes later when he pulls over because she is feeling ill it has a rear license plate. Additionally, when they are speeding down the freeway after leaving the mall the car has acquired a front license plate.
Crew/Equipment Visible
When Jerry and Sam are driving from the airport to the Mexican hotel towards the end of the film, parts of a camera are reflected in the car window.
Errors in Geography
Toluca City is a large industrial-urban city, 30 minutes by car from Mexico City. It is not a old rural town. Because of its closeness to Mexico City, no airline flies between the two cities.
Errors in Geography
When Leroy and Samantha leave the mall they drive on and on through the desert and end up in downtown Las Vegas at the Plaza Hotel. Maybe they just wanted to do a lot of driving, but in actuality the mall is on Las Vegas Blvd about 15 minutes driving on the strip to get up to the Plaza Hotel.
Factual Mistake
Mexico does not issue vanity license plates in real life. All license plates in Mexico consist of three or four numbers and three letters.
Miscellaneous
In the opening scene, the stop light is clearly red, yet cars are seen going through the light in all lanes.
Revealing Mistakes
The first time Jerry tucks his revolver beneath the dash of the El Camino (while Beck is relieving himself outside the bar), the orientation of the gun would indicate that the right side of the firearm is being shown to the audience; however, the cylinder release is clearly visible, indicating that this is actually the left side of the gun and the shot has been reversed. (Also note that he uses his right hand to stow the revolver but the orientation of the hand, especially the thumb, would indicate a left hand. This is further evidence of a flopped shot.)
Continuity
About two thirds into the movie, we see Sam and Winston (false Leroy) have breakfast at a diner after having partied in the hotel room the night before. Winston shares with Samantha, how his new lover, whom they picked up on the way, found out about what he does for a living by finding the gun that Winston hid before they had started to party. The night before, we see Winston slide the gun under the cushion of an armchair. However, when he tells Samantha that story, he talks about having hid the gun between towels in the bathroom.
Trivia:
It was on the set of this movie that Julia Roberts met her husband, cameraman Daniel Moder.
The apparently vicious "rabid dog" in the back of the truck is actually a Golden Retriever with its fur badly trimmed and dyed to look like a mutt.
James Gandolfini reportedly lost 35 pounds for his role as Winston, all of which he had to gain back before shooting re-commenced on the upcoming season of The Sopranos (1999) because producer David Chase believed that "The Sopranos" audience would not like a "skinny" Tony (Soprano).
Throughout the film, Jerry (and others) is seen to carry his handgun inside the front of the waistband but without a holster. Appropriate to the movie, this is known as "Mexican carry".
Despite the fact that this was filmed in Super 35, "Filmed in Panavision" is listed in the end credits.
In the scene where Gerry (Brad Pitt) is amusingly attempting to speak Spanish (widely spoken in Mexico) when saying to some men, "I need a lift in your El trucko to the next towno", there is also a reference to Robert De Niro. Pitt and De Niro co-starred in Sleepers (1996).
This was originally set to be a David Fincher project.
The apparently vicious "rabid dog" in the back of the truck is actually a Golden Retriever with its fur badly trimmed and dyed to look like a mutt.
James Gandolfini reportedly lost 35 pounds for his role as Winston, all of which he had to gain back before shooting re-commenced on the upcoming season of The Sopranos (1999) because producer David Chase believed that "The Sopranos" audience would not like a "skinny" Tony (Soprano).
Throughout the film, Jerry (and others) is seen to carry his handgun inside the front of the waistband but without a holster. Appropriate to the movie, this is known as "Mexican carry".
Despite the fact that this was filmed in Super 35, "Filmed in Panavision" is listed in the end credits.
In the scene where Gerry (Brad Pitt) is amusingly attempting to speak Spanish (widely spoken in Mexico) when saying to some men, "I need a lift in your El trucko to the next towno", there is also a reference to Robert De Niro. Pitt and De Niro co-starred in Sleepers (1996).
This was originally set to be a David Fincher project.
