Get the Gringo (2012)

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

Written by Gibson, producer Stacy Perskie, and director Adrian Grunberg (and based on an idea by Gibson), the film feels at first to fit right in with "Payback", right down to the gruff, pithy voice- over from a protagonist happily at home being bad. (Yeah, that's one Spoiler I should've alerted you about but I didn't and you'll know when you'll see the movie yourself) Gibson plays a man with no name -- he gives a number of aliases, (first appear wearing a rubbery clown mask; but he's billed only as the Ryan Gosling character and credited simply as "Driver") an unfortunately timed coincidence -- who commits a robbery and leads officials on a high-speed chase before barrelling over the U.S.-Mexico border. The film, surprisingly went straight to DVDs in the US but getting cinema release in Australia – is really art with a capital 'A'.For obvious reasons, it's hard for reviewers to approach Mel Gibson's films in a genuinely disinterested manner these days, but that doesn't mean it's not worth the effort. Once the audience realise they're getting Mel in classic action-movie mode, they'll come around and see that it's that same old Australian bad-ass handling weapons just like the old days, they'll realise what they're missing out here.It's true The Beaver, directed by his good friend Jodie Foster, was an awkward misfire but go back a little further and I defy anyone who appreciates great screen action to deny the cinematic virtuosity on display in the Gibson-directed Apocalypto. Many critics at the time kind of acknowledged this much but seemed embarrassed about admitting it; entirely understandable, perhaps, but not helpful in assessing the film's legacy. Since when did worthwhile art have to come only from nice guys? All the while, Gibson's nameless character sarcastically narrates, implying that such outrageous measures might reasonably qualify as the cost of doing business as a high-stakes criminal. The tone, inspired by film noir but amplified considerably for 21st-century audience, suggests "Lethal Weapon 3's" battle-scar comparison scene, as if this flashback were being offered to explain a gnarly gash — in this case sustained while breaking back into the world's craziest slammer, El Pueblito prison, based on a real correctional facility, in which inmates are allowed to bring their families to live with them behind bars.Gibson's sensibility remains one that chuckles at carnage and sees torture as the most effective way to ratchet up audience sympathies, but still doesn't take itself so seriously that the actor can't poke fun at himself — or old friend Clint Eastwood in an especially amusing impersonation. Gibson knows how to play to the camera, and Grunberg is savvy enough to maximise what the star gives, spinning a slick package around the crazy scenario.Production values are tops, with special kudos to the team that recreated El Pueblito in a whitewashed Veracruz prison not far from where Gibson and Grunberg made "Apocalypto."

The movie sure presents unique new things to learn especially about the supposedly corrupt Mexican prison and law enforcement system and also the street smarts someone's got to have if he/she wishes to survive in it. I really like how the production design helped so much in presenting the world needed to depict this story. It gets the world presented to be both colorful and very nastily dirty at the same time. The story got some curious thing sat first that could really incite interest. But as it develops, it surely seen that it only focuses on the driver character and the kid, without even explain enough on the characters like Frank and even Kaufman. This made this lot of the last one-third of this movie feel unconnected to the rest of the story built thus far. The acting overall is a so-so for me. Mel Gibson didn't hit it quite right to his character, which was portrayed on the border of being either a sanguine or a calm and calculated person. For me it's a long way from what I've seen from him in his more serious action roles like in The Patriot or even Braveheart. Kevin Hernandez and Dolores Heredia did enough to keep their characters afloat for the story.

GET THE GRINGO (aka WHAT I DID ON MY SUMMER VACATION) is classic Mel Gibson. He's a battered old bank robber - just like in PAYBACK - who stumbles across the border into Mexico with a couple of million and a dead partner. The Mex cops nick his cash, to spend on hookers and German cars, whilst throwing him into the slammer. Based on a real life experiment (which inevitably ended badly), the prison is sorta-open; with the criminals carrying guns, dealing drugs and even living with their families inside. The only rule is that escape means death. Mel gives the place plenty of sarcastic voice-over, all whilst casing the joint, making friends with a cigarette-crazy kid and even romancing the boy's mother. Soon he's climbing the criminal ladder, even as the people whose money he stole come looking for him. Cue some satisfyingly Peckinpah-esque blood'n'slo-mo shootouts, as well as a slightly random digression from the prison. It's gory, foul-mouthed and cynical...but somehow still has its heart in the right place as Mel finds redemption (he is Catholic after all) and settles scores. A taut 90 minutes long, this old-school thriller ought to have re- established his career after his drunken ZOG-ranting but alas...

I have always liked Mel Gibson and I really do not care how drunk or politically incorrect he might be. I still like to see him in movies and this is a surprisingly good movie. The movie had a proper theatrical premier in most countries except USA where it went straight to VOD which I find a bit surprising. It is a lot better movie than much of the stuff that are shown in theaters. I suspect the politically correct hypocrites had something to do with that.Personally, I found this movie surprisingly good. Mel Gibson fit the role very well and made a quite good performance. The settings with the bizarre prison which looked like a cross between Alcatraz and Freetown Christiania in Copenhagen was quite cool. It was the kind of setting that I would not have been surprised to find in a Tarantino-movie. I also liked the cynical and somewhat ironical voice-over by Gibson.The story was okay. Perhaps not the most believable one but good enough for this kind of action movie. Speaking of action, there were indeed some decent action in the movie but it is not like the movie is overloaded with it. It is nicely spread out and once the action starts it is pretty good. It is also true that some scenes are a wee bit gruesome but I am not sure that I agree with the R-rating. Most of the time that rating felt a bit over the top. Still, I rather have a R-rated movie with cuts than a PG-13 with lots of silly cuts in it.There were some silly bits of course, like how easy Mel could evade the prison and make a "business-trip" to the states when he finally felt like it and the entire business of performing transplantation surgery in a filthy prison. Mel might have found that "put it back" statement funny when he wrote it but it came out rather silly to me.Bottom line is that this was a quite enjoyable movie. A perfect after-work movie when you feel like parking your brain somewhere in the garage with your car and just sit down and watch something requiring a minimum of concentration.