50/50 Review #11: Three Amigos!

I'd seen chunks of this movie before as a child. Parts came back to me as I watched it again (the "my little buttercup" bar scene, for instance). But on the whole, it was a new experience, which is why I included it here. Though you might be asking yourself "hey, wasn't the last movie of this month supposed to be Godzilla vs. Smog Monster?" You would be correct. However, due to the movie not existing... anywhere... I had to switch it out. Thus, Three Amigos.

For those unacquainted, the film is about three out-of-work actors named Lucky Day (Steve Martin), Dusty Bottoms (Chevy Chase), and Ned Nederlander (Martin Short). They're hired to go to a small Mexican town to defeat the evil El Guapo (Alfonso Arau). But, of course, they don't realize the situation is real until it's too late.

(I know this one came out first, but bear with me...) The plot is essentially the same as My Name Is Bruce, but despite my love of Bruce Campbell, this one is the far superior film. Don't get me wrong, it's not perfect. There are things that feel out of place (talking and/or singing animals and a couple other fantasy elements--though the singing bush sequence is still hilarious, so I let that one slide). And the Germans thing goes nowhere and is never really explained. But the film is still pretty damn good.

What is there to say? The trio of Martin, Chase, and Short is fantastic. The humor is spot on, and almost all the jokes work great. I was laughing out loud in the first couple minutes with the singing. Speaking of, the music was nice and catchy, and some of them made for some outstanding scenes (particularly, again, the "my little buttercup" scene). It's apparently a movie that a lot of people didn't like, however (including, if I'm not mistaken, Roger Ebert). But those people are just weird. I thought it was really funny, quirky, smart, and an all-around good time.


A Keanu 'Whoa'

(P.S. That wraps up Nolahn's Month! That was one heck of a fun month. I've already bought my first movie of the 50/50 from this month, and hope to some day own another. Anyway, next month we get a little more "serious" and classic with Dan Heaton's Month... whose first movie is taking me all the way back to 1931 and giving me my second Charlie Chaplin film. Let's do this!)