By
Mark Betancourt
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Grade: B
Julia Roberts can do no wrong as far as the film industry is concerned, and Brad Pitt is getting there. Putting the two together in a movie at this stage in their careers guarantees success, and success is what "The Mexican" will have. Interestingly enough, it's not just because of them.
The story is simple - Pitt is a bagman for something Mafia-like, he has a knack for messing up, and Roberts is his over-analytical girlfriend. He is given one last job before the organization cuts him loose - if he can manage to get it done without falling victim to his lifelong affinity for bad luck. From there, pretty much anything could happen and people would still go see the movie.
Pitt is cutely funny, employing the same boyish charm he used to forge Tyler Durden in "Fight Club." Think of Jerry, his character in "The Mexican," as Tyler's mama's-boy little brother.
Roberts, who plays Jerry's girlfriend Samantha, is good at playing herself -but someone told her to act like Brooke Sheilds in this movie. Sometimes, when she goes on long rants about how Jerry keeps messing up her life while quoting save-your-relationship self-help books, you want to slap her. She is getting really good at crying, though.
The interesting part of "The Mexican," which gets its name from the vintage gun Jerry is commissioned to retrieve from Mexico, is the way in which it focuses on the ins and outs of everyday relationships amidst so much gangster stuff.
People get shot, kidnapped, beaten, double-crossed and stiffed, but the movie manages to make it all seem like one big analogy to the trials of love.
By far the most interesting character in this film is Leroy, played admirably by the Don of HBO's "The Sopranos," James Gandolfini. Leroy, a trained assassin fabled to sit in his gasoline-soaked garage and light matches, kidnaps Samantha as insurance that Jerry will complete his mission. But as Sam and Leroy get to know each other, she discovers that he's pretty sensitive for a hitman.
Leroy ends up being the wise and patient mediator between Jerry and Sam, as their relationship is in serious trouble due to Jerry's unpredictable vocation. Gandolfini plays Leroy well, with just the right mix of heartfelt concern and cold hitman's countenance.
There are jokes in "The Mexican," which by default makes it a comedy. But most of the movie's punchlines read like roadside taco stands - they come and go without really drawing anyone's attention. The script often plays on the fact that Jerry is in Mexico, drawing on such comedic goldmines as Pitt saying "El Camino." While there isn't anything inherently wrong with the humor, for the most part the audience just forgets to laugh. Not that we didn't want to.
As romantic comedies go, "The Mexican" does pretty well. It offers up some truly useful advice, and the fact that it comes mostly from the mouth of a thug puts an interesting spin on things. Leroy's own tough demeanor, which keeps him from having a decent relationship, serves to represent the problems that we all have putting our feelings at the mercy of the shortcomings of those we love.
"The Mexican" didn't need Pitt and Roberts to do this. In fact the film might even have been taken more seriously without them. It could have been more like "Almost Famous," which people recognize more for its overall quality than its actors. The stars might overshadow the film in this case, but no one in "The Mexican's" promotions department is complaining.
