The key to enjoying this movie is understanding the fiction within the fiction. This movie is about a larger than life legend and in the telling of his story it is embellished.
Knowing this will save you a lot of grief and make the watching worth it. Don't waste your time pointing out impossible stunts and unbelievable gunfights. Look at as mythology.
That said, I really had fun watching Once. It almost like watching a Clint Eastwood and Sergio Leone movie. In fact, I would call it an homage to the great director. Leone's sweeping style and close -ups. Even Leone's habit of casting actors as different characters after he previously killed them off was visited. Even as far as making his villain almost more likeable than his hero. All these elements were present and it was refreshing. This is not to give the impression that Rodriguez didn't present any originality, however, he was clearly influenced by Leone.
Antonio Banderas owned the screen even with only about 100 words total throughout the whole movie. And I was reminded of how I fell in lust with him after watching Desperado. Sizzling hot. Salma Hayek was adorable and sexy and will leave the male audience dazed and confused. But the standout was Johnny Depp. Once again he takes a role and makes a character that is hard to forget. I'm really becoming his biggest fan. He was spectacular. Eva Mendes is really starting to impress me. I've mentioned she is almost the twin of my best friend, which always freaks me out at first. Both Danny Trejos and Cheech Marin were welcome sights. The stunts were phenomenal. I got a rush with each explosion and hurtling of a body.
I do have some complaints, though. The storyline was a bit convoluted making it hard to follow and dissect at times. Wilem Dafoe and his character seemed more than a little bit lost. Mickey Rourke is showing signs of hard living or a severe face-lift, which was a little painful to watch. This issues were enough to distract me to the point where I had to take away a few points.
The Directive
Despite my misgivings Once is still well worth catching on the big screen. Have fun with it.
Rich on characters but poor on plot.
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Copyright Kamal "The Diva" Larsuel-Ulbricht, 2003
EMAIL: thediva@3blackchicks.com
ICQ: 8690410
http://www.3blackchicks.com/
Rated R; running time of 101 minutes