Get the Gringo (2012)

Sadly Over-hyped

Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

I feel like I have to qualify every review I make of a Mel Gibson film, so yes, he is an awful, crazy person, but oh man was this an great movie! Mel is a nameless getaway driver on the run with two million in cash, who is arrested by Mexican police within the first two minutes of the film and thrown into jail where he schemes to escape and recover his money. The story and main character have a hard-boiled, lean efficiency that's enthralling, and both also have a nasty violent edge that may not be to the tastes of all viewers (blood and guts Mel co-wrote and produced the film), but much of this is played for for comedy. I really don't want to ruin any of the story beyond the set-up, but Mel uses his wits, charms, guns, and fists to survive a prison like you've never seen. "Edge of Darkness" was somewhat of a return to action for Mel, but this film is undeniably a return to the giddy violent action of "Lethal Weapon" or "Payback", which this film could easily have been a sequel (Mel's character at one point references a partner double crossing him with his wife). Strangely, Mel chose not to release the film theatrically in the US and decided to show it Video-On-Demand instead, but I can kind of see his reasoning, as there are some pretty rough non-Hollywood elements in the film that you would certainly never see in most mainstream action films. Overall, if you're in the mood for "Payback" by way of "Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia", then this is the film for you!

This movie is not great. Unfortunately Mel Gibson has been in some very poor quality films and this is certainly one of them. The plot of this movie is dull, the characters are dull, the music is garbage and the editing is so poor that it actually gave me a headache.To start with the movie opens with a dog taking a wizz in a field followed by a man in a horse drawn cart. Then it cuts to a car chase with Gibson in the car wearing a clown suit (which is never explained)??? Why did we need those two first scenes? Why could it not start with the car chase in it? These sorts of scenes make it really confusing to watch the film because you sit there and ask "why were these scenes put in?" The car chase itself didn't make any sense as Mel crashes through a metal fence and he is in Mexico. I have actually seen the border between Mexico and the USA and trust me it is a lot more tightly controlled than a metal fence with a convenient ramp placed half way across it so you can do really cool car jumps through it. Sorry to go on so much about the opening scene but it really is that stupid and makes no sense at all.The overall plot is stupid and difficult to enjoy due to the pacing and editing that was used. The editing in this movie is all over the place with scenes being glued together with lots of cut scenes of babies crying, Mexicans making fajitas and dogs barking. Bad editing leads to the film not being structured in a seamless way and you really tell with movies like this. Stupid plot points ruin this story as well. If the prison town is so secure and even the big crime boss who owns the police can't escape then why can school girls walk right through this town? Also the fact that they let kids and civilians in and out of the prison to get around is inherently dangerous. Surely one of them would be held hostage, murdered or raped.The characters are dull and have no development to them. Gibson plays just an older more depressing version of Riggs from Lethal weapon and has no real report with both the kid his mother who he later fancies for no reason other than she is there. The kid is not a great child star but does okay and some of his scenes are passable with real emotion in them.The mother is the worst character by far. She is just there to be tortured and act scared the whole time and she can't even do that right. She fake cries a lot which is just terribly distracting and brings the tone of the scene down. Her "romantic" scene with Gibson at the end when he asks "can I bite you?" and she says "maybe" is terrible, creepy, flat and not convincing at all. Their whole relationship and the back and forth they are supposed to have is utterly non-existent and is just bad character development on the scripts part. This movie is directed by a guy (Adrian Gruberg) with only two directing credits to his name, this being the first film he has directed. Every director has to start somewhere however his inexperience is what leads to this film being poorly shot with terrible camera work, cinematography and bad direction of characters on camera. The CG blood in this film is awful and you can tell it is not used to the right effect. I have no problem with CG blood when it is done well, like in the film Zodiac however in this you can really tell it is CG. The worst thing is that in some cases actual blood packs would have worked way better and added a nice practical effect to the stilted action scenes. In this film they seem to have got a hold of what Americans think typical Mexican music is and just put it haphazardly and ineffectively into this film. The music in this is so bad that it actually pains me to say that even I could do a better film score and I'm an idiot. For me music makes a film better and when you just put generic Spanish/Mexican music in a film just because it is set in Mexico the music adds no feel to a film. From Dusk till Dawn uses music very well and that is set in Mexico, so why couldn't this film do that?The only thing I loved about this film was its short running time and I would not really recommend this movie to anyone interested in film. If you want a dumb story with glaring plot holes and lots of meaningless violence please watch this.

Mel Gibson has been slowly working his way back into everyone's good graces. Hacksaw Ridge was a big hit in theatres this year and I think while he might not have as big of a fan base, there's no denying that the guy is excellent at his craft. This was one of his earlier comeback films and I dismissed it because it either didn't get a theatrical release or it was extremely limited. I'm not going to lie, the scandals around Gibson may have played a part too. I just turned this on via Netflix on a lazy Sunday morning and was pretty impressed by it, it was completely different from what I expected. The movie flew by and by the time it was over, I would have happily spent another half hour with Driver and this cast of characters.*Minor Spoilers Ahead* Things aren't going well for Driver (Mel Gibson). He's driving a car with a bag of money in the back with his fellow robber bleeding all over it. Making things worse is the fact that the police and the border patrol are on his tail as he's trying to escape to Mexico. He comes to the realization he can't get away while he's driving alongside the wall at the border and he wrecks the car on the Mexico side of the wall. The U.S. border patrol agents expect the Mexican police to hand Driver over but after $2 million is discovered in the back seat, they decide to process him. Thus begins Driver's integration into the Mexican prison system which has it's own unique flavour compared to the American system which he's already been through a couple of times.If you're a fan of this genre, when it comes to either comedies or dramas centred around the penal system, it's usually American or British. Driver is jailed in a Mexican prison and while you wouldn't think that would be hugely different, it actually is. Driver learning the ins and outs of this prison was different and I found it wholly entertaining. Driver describes the prison as "the world's shittiest mall" and it was really cool how differently it operated. The guards were much more hands off and it operated as more of a contained singular universe. It helped make Get the Gringo a different type of movie, it was more of a noirish comedy/drama and I really enjoyed the direction they took with it.The next great thing about this movie is the character of Driver. Driver is my kind of protagonist, he's not a good guy, he's got a sharp mind, enough grit to deal with the seedier side of El Pueblito (the name of the prison) and enough of a moral code to avoid being a complete scumbag. I've heard this is an unofficial sequel to Payback (which I haven't seen) but the character seemed to fit Gibson's strengths as an actor easily.It's not necessarily easy to watch Mel Gibson in movies again but if you can separate his personal life from his work, Get the Gringo shows why he was one of the biggest stars of his day. He's great here and I like the fact he doesn't mind being the bad guy. Kevin Hernandez held up his end of the movie as Kid, that's pretty rare for a kid actor. Gibson and Hernandez have a good comedic rapport together. I also really liked Dolores Heredia as Kid's mom, she wasn't the typical damsel or love interest for Driver. She had toughness despite having the requisite love for her son. The rest of the cast also fit the bill nicely, the movie is centred around Mel but supporting characters do their jobs.Add in the fact that the movie is pretty funny due to some witty dialogue and Get the Gringo makes for a pretty fun ride. I would actually put it around an 8.5/10. I don't agree with Gibson's opinions or his activities in his personal life but he hammered out a pretty solid movie here. It's very Guy Ritchie like and that's a good thing. I can't give it a 9 because it doesn't hit that truly awesome level for me but I would recommend this highly.

HOW I SPENT MY SUMMER VACATIONSo Mel Gibson can't control his mouth when he drinks. He gets into trouble with the police and pretty much everyone else with his racist views... then just when everyone has given up on his and starts calling him a has been, he whips out a great film like this.The movie is about a criminal called Driver, who gets arrested crossing the Mexican border who ends up in a rough prison. But this prison is like no other. Men, Women and children are here. It is like a little town. The problem is this town is run by a bunch of ruthless criminals who do not care who they hurt. Driver just wants to get out and get his money from the police officers who arrested him and kept his stolen money. He gets a friend inside the prison who he looks out for... a 10 year old boy.OK, so a good movie does not forgive Mel for his actions or his views, but if you forget his personal life and just look at his career, then the man can act and has made some fantastic movies.This is not one of his best, but it proves he still has it in him.The story is very good. I like the idea of a prison where the inmates start up their own little town. Mels character was brilliant. Driver took no trouble from anyone and was not scared of anyone. I loved the way he didn't let anyone stand in his way.The movie might be called in Get the Gringo in parts of the world.The casting was really good. Mel Gibson does a great job as I have said before. I look forward to seeing him in The Expendables 3. I just hope he sorts out his personal issues. Other cast members were Kevin Hernandez, Daniel Gimenez Cacho, Jesus Ochoa and Dolores Heredia. The whole cast was great... but Kevin Hernandez was brilliant. He played his part so well. It was shocking at first, but very well done.The action is good and the movie is a lot of fun.Mel is back and I hope he manages to get his fans back.I will give this film 7 out of 10."Well, boys and girls. To the untrained eye it looks as if crime pays, doesn't it? But bear in mind, for guys with my particular set of karmic could-be's, there was bound to be a bump or two down the road. Ah, what the hell. I'm going to enjoy what's left of the summer..."For more reviews, please like my Facebook page:https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ordinary-Person-Movie- Reviews/456572047728204?ref=hl