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El Mariachi

Name: El Mariachi
Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller
Released: 1993-02-22
Cast: Carlos Gallardo, Consuelo Gómez, Jaime de Hoyos, Peter Marquardt, Reinol Martinez

1993 | 81 min | Action, Crime, Thriller

Saturday Special

Why it’s a Saturday Special

It earned strong reviews (91% on Rotten Tomatoes) and it's still drawing plenty of interest, despite soft box office. A strong pick for the weekend.

Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.

Is it for you?

Who'll love it: Made for crime fans, anyone who likes to be kept guessing and action fans. If you loved Touch of Evil or Sicario, start here. Critics rate it higher than audiences do, so it rewards patience more than it chases thrills.
The mood: Tense, gritty.
The pace: Fast-moving, at 1 hr 21 min.
What might put you off: Rated R: meant for adults.
Audiences were cooler on it than critics.

El Mariachi just wants to play his guitar and carry on the family tradition. Unfortunately, the town he tries to find work in has another visitor, a killer who carries his guns in a guitar case. The drug lord and his henchmen mistake el Mariachi for the killer, Azul, and chase him around town trying to kill him and get his guitar case.

How it earned its rating

CriticsStrong
91% on Rotten Tomatoes, 73 on Metacritic
AudiencesSolid
6.7 out of 10
AwardsWeak
1 win and 0 nominations from smaller awards and festivals
Box office & staying powerBelow par
$2 million worldwide on a $7K budget; still draws a steady audience long after release
Buzz & cultural impactStrong
About 214K people sought it out in the past year