I like it. Good example of independent filmmaking. And Rodriguez is one of my favourites. Definitely worth a watch. I watched it many times now and still keeps inspiring me. Story is good and it's well shot by a single man. Would recommend to anyone trying to break in into the industry. Such a nice archivement.

Two men arrive in a Mexican town; each dressed in black and carrying a guitar case… they are however very different. One, our protagonist, is an aspiring mariachi looking for somewhere to make a living playing his guitar; the other a killer named Azul, whose guitar case is full of weapons, is there to find and kill his former partner in crime, Moco. After Azul kills several of Moco's men the word is out that a killer in black, carrying a guitar case, is responsible. Inevitably they mistake the innocent mariachi for the killer and try to kill him… not only does he manage to get away he manages to kill four of them! He then takes refuge in the bar belonging to a woman called Domino. Before the film reaches its conclusion the mariachi will have more problems with Moco's men before it becomes clear that he isn't the man they want… and even then he won't be safe.This is an enjoyable action movie; certainly a lot more fun than many big-budget movies. The very low budget does show at times but that doesn't matter too much; it almost adds to the charm. The story is simple without any unnecessary subplots and at a mere eighty two minutes it certainly doesn't drag. The main cast do a decent enough job; most notably Carlos Gallardo as our titular mariachi, it was good that the character looked like an ordinary young man not an obvious action hero. Robert Rodriguez did a fine job directing and making this film for a pittance. There is plenty of action throughout the film; most of it isn't particularly shocking. There are also a few laughs to be had along the way. Overall I'd recommend this to the fans of action films.These comments are based on watching the film in Spanish with English subtitles.

This film is quite well known for being made on a $7000 budget, and while that can be quite impressive... Parts of this film are far from it. But that doesn't meant this is a bad film. Not at all.First I want to cover the more amateur feeling parts of this film that bring it down. The acting can be pretty iffy at times, sometimes coming across as quite terrible. The camera work can be a bit shoddy at times as well, with certain shots containing random camera shaking that just seems to be an error rather then stylistic choice. Audio can be strange and distracting too, generally due to the fact that the film was shot silent and then the audio was recorded on set with a cheap recording device and synced later. Also, the story is pretty cheesy and is full of little plot holes that if you're paying attention will make you go "wait...what?".These cons do not completely take away from the pros however. I think there's a lot to be respected about this film, due to how cheap it was made. There are occasionally shots that are quote impressive and well thought out. While the story is kinda cheesy, it does get you interested when things start to heat up. There's almost a kind of fun aspect to the film where you see certain things and wonder to yourself how they were done on such a cheap budget. It's a great first film and is an interesting film for people who want to create their own, due to the fact that it was created so cheap and creatively. It's an example of how you can start off small, but become big.

I suspect that the screen play was only partially written before filming started, or they ran out of money and decided to wrap up the filming early.I concluded the above because character development and the plot unfolded quite naturally in the first half of the film. Then for some unknown reason, some characters developed exaggerated facial expressions and mannerisms and the plot vanished into thin air.Further, bold characters become caricatures and meek characters become inexplicably heroic. One character who probably had never seen an automatic weapon is instantly an inerrant shot and a quick draw. Another character, who wouldn't be caught dead without his Uzi, takes on drug lord and his gang with only a hostage and pistol.In the first half of the film there were some very interesting cinematographic shots worthy of great director. In the second half, those dazzling techniques were few and far between.This could have been a very good movie, if more time had been taken in writing the screen play.