Wednesday, October 11, 2017

Three Amigos

 
Three Amigos! (1986)
Dir: John Landis
Staring Steve Martin, Chevy Chase, Martin Short, Alfonso Arau

After losing their jobs in Hollywood, three actors inadvertently wind up in Mexico facing off against a Mexican gang leader.


So this is a pretty simple story, which riffs on the Seven Samurai/Magnificent Seven idea of a desperate town enlisting the help of some gunfighters to stop a bandit. So a villager writes to them not realizing that the films of their exploits are fictional, and the recently unemployed actors think that the request is for a personal appearance think it's a quick way to make some easy money, and journey south. They (somewhat) quickly figure out the truth, and decide to do the right thing and try to stop the bandits.

A big reason why this film works is the cast. The three leads are likable, and fun in their roles. Their charm and chemistry is the main reason why the movie works. But credit also has to be given to Steve Martin's script, which is great at hitting the typical tropes of the Magnificent Seven story, but at the same time throwing in weirder bits like the invisible swordsman and the singing bush.

Long story short, it's a great movie.

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