Once Upon a Time in Mexico is a 2003 American contemporary western action film written, directed, produced, photographed, scored, and edited by Robert Rodriguez. It is the third and final film in Rodriguez's Mexico Trilogy, and it is a sequel to 1993's El Mariachi and 1995's Desperado. The film features Antonio Banderas in his second and final performance as El Mariachi. In the film, El Mariachi is recruited by CIA agent Sheldon Sands (Johnny Depp) to kill Armando Barillo (Willem Dafoe), a Mexican drug lord who is planning a coup d'état against the President of Mexico. At the same time, El Mariachi seeks revenge against a corrupt general responsible for the death of his wife, Carolina (Salma Hayek).
It was Rodriguez' first big budget film to be shot in digital HD. Once Upon a Time in Mexico received positive reviews but was criticized for reducing its protagonist to an almost secondary character in his own trilogy and for having a convoluted plot. In the special features of the film's DVD, Rodriguez explained this was intentional, as he wanted this to be his The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of the trilogy. Once Upon a Time in Mexico grossed $98 million.
Plot[]
Return of the mythic guitar-slinging hero, El Mariachi, in the final installment of the Mariachi/Desperado trilogy. The saga continues as El Mariachi makes his way across a rugged landscape on the blood trail of Barrillo, a cartel kingpin with one last score to settle who is planning a coup d'etat against the president of Mexico. Enlisted by Sands, a corrupt CIA agent, El Mariachi demands retribution.
Cast[]
- Antonio Banderas as "El Mariachi"
- Salma Hayek as Carolina
- Johnny Depp as CIA Agent Sands
- Mickey Rourke as Billy Chambers
- Eva Mendes as Ajedrez
- Danny Trejo as "Cucuy"
- Enrique Iglesias as Lorenzo
- Marco Leonardi as Fideo
- Cheech Marin as Belini
- Julio Oscar Mechoso as Nicholas
- Rubén Blades as Jorge Ramirez
- Willem Dafoe as Armando Barillo
- Pedro Armendáriz, Jr. as President of Mexico