![]() The three dumbly head off to Mexico thinking they are expected to put on a show for Santa Poco, and the great ‘actor’ El Guapo. ![]() As generally happens in the movies, fate conveniently intervenes when the telegram from Mexico arrives. Rather than playing their proverbial cards close to their chest, Lucky Day memorably proclaims to the studio chief “No dough, no show.” It’s a move that gets them thrown out of the studio stripped down to their undergarments. Our heroes’ studio contracts are up for renewal. The movie she saw them in is, sadly, just that: a movie.Ĭut to Hollywood. Unfortunately, what Carmen doesn’t realise is that the Amigos are actually silent movie action stars. In a vain last attempt at finding help, the town leader’s daughter, Carmen (Patrice Martinez), sends a telegram to the Amigos imploring them to come to their town to rid them of El Guapo and his gang of thugs. The town of Santo Poco is regularly under attack by the villainous bandit El Guapo (director Alphonso Arau). The setup is a deceptively simple take on mistaken identities. It’s sweeping, majestic, and wisely belies the film’s insanity. To drive things home, composer Elmer Bernstein ( Magnificent Seven, The Great Escape, Animal House, Ghostbusters) contributes a sweeping orchestral score that, to be honest, still has me humming all these years later. His sense of comic timing and the bizarre, coupled with solid scene composition, elevates the script to a level it might not have gone to in different hands. After proving himself with such classics as Animal House, The Blues Brothers, and Trading Places, Landis was the natural final piece in the creative puzzle that was Three Amigos. As one of the 1980s’ go-to comedy directors, John Landis’ career couldn’t have been hotter. What you do get is a film that on one level harks back to the bygone age of Hollywood movie musicals, classic westerns, and Caddyshack for good measure. At the very least, that’s going to make you a little curious as to what’s in store. But, then having Chevy Chase, Martin Short, and director John Landis along for the ride is the icing on the cake. It’s not often you have the unique combination of Steve Martin, Lorne Michaels (Saturday Night Live), and songwriter Randy Newman (Toy Story) writing a screenplay. Whatever your opinion of it, it’s hard to deny that for its time, Three Amigos represented a supreme melting pot of comedy royalty. Time seems to have salvaged it, and its plethora of laughs (“What is a plethora?”) still echo in the hallways of more than a few college dorm rooms. That would have outraged even the Amigos themselves! But far from disappearing into the sunset of forgotten movies, we’re still talking about Three Amigos 26 years later. ![]() But, for some reason, like so many classic and cult movies before it, Three Amigos wasn’t a huge hit on its original release in 1986. Its scenes, characters, and story have since passed into comedy legend.
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