Desperado (1995)
80%RT Audience Score: 79%
Awards & Nominations: 1 win & 5 nominations
Desperado contains almost too much action and too little story to sustain interest, but Antonio Banderas proves a charismatic lead in Robert Rodriguez’s inventive extravaganza
Desperado is the kind of movie that makes you want to grab a beer, some popcorn, and just enjoy the ride. Sure, it’s not the most original film out there, but who cares when you have Antonio Banderas looking like a total badass with his guitar case full of guns? The action scenes are over-the-top and ridiculous, but that’s what makes them so much fun. Plus, the soundtrack is killer. If you’re in the mood for some mindless entertainment, Desperado is the perfect choice.
Production Company(ies)
Nouvelles Éditions de Films,
Distributor
Columbia Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Ciudad Acuña, Coahuíla, Mexico
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for strong bloody violence, a strong sex sequence and language
Year of Release
1995
-
Color:Color
-
Sound mix:Dolby SR
-
Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
-
Runtime:1h 43m
-
Language(s):English, Spanish
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Aug 25, 1995 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 9, 1999
Genre(s)
Action
Keyword(s)
starring Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek, Joaquim de Almeida, Cheech Marin, Steve Buscemi, Carlos Gomez, directed by Robert Rodriguez, written by Robert Rodriguez, produced by Robert Rodriguez, Bill Borden, action, R rating, strong bloody violence, language, strong sex scene, box office gross $24.9M, budget, reviewed by Juan M Mendez, Owen Gleiberman, Geoff Andrew, Janet Maslin, Kenneth Turan, Mick LaSalle, Mariachi, Mexican drug lords, Bucho, Carolina, Short Bartender, Right Hand, Dolby Stereo, Dolby A, SDDS, Surround, Stereo, Dolby Digital, Dolby SR, Flat (1.85:1)
Worldwide gross: $25,405,445
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $49,956,247
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,324
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 5,447,791
US/Canada gross: $25,405,445
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $49,956,247
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,071
US/Canada opening weekend: $7,910,446
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $15,554,783
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 770
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $7,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $13,764,519
Production budget ranking: 1,545
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $7,412,193
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $28,779,535
ROI to date (est.): 136%
ROI ranking: 807
Salma Hayek – Carolina
Joaquim de Almeida – Bucho
Cheech Marin – Short Bartender
Steve Buscemi – Buscemi
Carlos Gomez – Right Hand
Director(s)
Robert Rodriguez
Writer(s)
Robert Rodriguez
Producer(s)
Robert Rodriguez, Bill Borden
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
1 win & 5 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (49) | Top Critics (15) | Fresh (33) | Rotten (16)
[A] satisfying banquet of pulp filmmaking.
August 18, 2021 | Rating: 3/4
Juan M. Mendez
New York Daily News
TOP CRITIC
September 7, 2011 | Rating: B
Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
Rodriguez’s second feature may be a rambling, derivative exercise in gratuitous violence, but its determination to proceed as if the word ‘restraint’ never existed makes for gleeful entertainment.
January 26, 2006
Geoff Andrew
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
Mr. Rodriguez may be good enough to make a film about anything, but Desperado would collapse if its characters had to do anything but play with guns.
May 20, 2003 | Rating: 2.5/5
Janet Maslin
New York Times
TOP CRITIC
What Rodriguez has essentially done in Desperado is make a slicker, more expensive copy of what came before. And what looked promising for $7,000 looks tiresome for a whole lot more.
August 15, 2002 | Rating: 2/5
Kenneth Turan
Los Angeles Times
TOP CRITIC
The routine gets tiresome for the Mariachi, and for the audience, too, after about an hour.
June 18, 2002 | Rating: 2/4
Mick LaSalle
San Francisco Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
If you laugh through most of the uniquely entertaining Desperado,’ you’ll have a great time.
February 25, 2022 | Rating: 3/4
Mal Vincent
The Virginian-Pilot
Desperado is a brilliant action film and an enduring favorite among fans of Rodiguez’s oeuvre.
October 22, 2021
Toussaint Egan
Polygon
It’s a splashy, flashy, sexy cartoon with a charismatic star who has a fine old time stomping his refined European image into the dust.
August 19, 2021 | Rating: 3/4
Margaret A. McGurk
Cincinnati Enquirer
Filled with action thrilling sequences, “Desperado” goes to show what Robert Rodriguez can do with a decent budget. With stylish and inventive weapons, this film will keep audiences entertained.
July 3, 2021 | Rating: 3/5
Rosa Parra
Latinx Lens
Brimming with innovative and whimsical gunplay and action arrangements, built up through fitting music, sharp camerawork, and a unique, semi-Spaghetti Western setting.
September 11, 2020 | Rating: 7/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
“Desperado is filled with an undeniable enthusiasm that makes its faults easier to ignore.”
August 27, 2020
Tim Stevens
The Spool…
Plot
Director Robert Rodriguez picks up where his successful independent debut El Mariachi left off with this slam-bang South of the Border action saga. Bucho (Joaquim DeAlmeida) is a wealthy but casually bloodthirsty drug kingpin who rules a seedy Mexican border town. Bucho and his men make the mistake of angering El Mariachi (Antonio Banderas), a former musician who now carries an arsenal in his guitar case. Bucho was responsible for the death of El Mariachi’s girlfriend and put a bullet through his fretting hand, making him unable to play the guitar. Bent on revenge, the musician-turned-killing machine arrives in town to put Bucho out of business, though he finds few allies except for Carolina (Salma Hayek), who runs a bookstore that doesn’t seem to attract many readers. Desperado features supporting performances from Cheech Marin as a cynical bartender, Steve Buscemi as the cantina patron who sets up the story, and Quentin Tarantino as a man with a really terrible joke to tell.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
No goofy or funny or odd comments were found in the Fresh Kernels database for Desperado.
Robert-Rodriguez.jpg
