Not Your Average Mexican Hay-ride

Rating: Null/10 (31 July 2001)

Although I am not AS lovestruck with this film as many other reviewers are, I did find it an entertaining albeit conscience-churning experience. From Dusk Till Dawn really is two films in one. The first part tells the story of the Gecko boys(Not Geico) played by George Clooney and Quentin Tarentino. They are escapees from the law and have killed over a dozen people brutally already by the time the film opens. For me, this tale of how they kill a gas station guy and finally abduct a preacher and his two children for their RV is the most chilling part of the film. Clooney plays a guy with little moral conscience well. Tarentino does a good job too and you can see his wit throughout the script. I found both men very despicable, so I guess the acting was good. The film falls into parody/farce, however, once the the whole gang(the two Geckos and the preacher and his daughter and son)reach a strip club/bar out in the middle of nowhere in Mexico. What happens here, to the uninformed viewer, will be totally unexpected. Does it work? To a degree, however, the film really loses momentum and credibility it might have had. The acting in general is all acceptable. Harvey Keitel once again shows us why he is such a good actor. Juliette Lewis is also very good in her role as his daughter. Nice to see guys like Tom Savini and Fred Williamson too. Oh, and Salma Hayek IS the highlight of the film.