Line #92 Film/OnceUponATimeInMexico


1	[[quoteright:339:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/once_upon_a_time_in_mexico_verdvd.jpg]]
2
3	''Once Upon a Time in Mexico'' is the third film of the ''Mexico'' or ''[[Film/ElMariachi Mariachi]]'' Trilogy, directed by Creator/RobertRodriguez.
4
5	We open with crooked CIA Agent Sands (Creator/JohnnyDepp) seeking the legendary gunman El Mariachi, notable for using [[SenselessViolins a guitar case full of guns]] as his primary weapon. Throughout the movie, El Mariachi's backstory is revealed in a number of flashbacks; prior to the events of this film, his wife [[Film/{{Desperado}} Carolina]] and child were murdered by soldiers of the ruthless Mexican General Marquez (Gerardo Vigil). General Marquez is working for Barillo (Creator/WillemDafoe), a drug cartel kingpin who has plans to assassinate the president of Mexico and assume power. Mariachi agrees to kill Marquez after the President's assassination, as he will gain too much power if he lives.
6
7	Sands proceeds to recruit a retired FBI agent named Jorge Ramirez (Creator/RubenBlades), whose partner was tortured for two weeks and killed by Barillo years earlier. He unwittingly participates in Sands's plot to overthrow the Mexican government and plans to kill Barillo and his lackeys [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness once they outlive their usefulness.]]
8
9	Sands also enlists the services of his ex-girlfriend, AFN Agent Ajedrez (Creator/EvaMendes), who is also hunting Barillo.
10
11	With so many c(r)ooks in the kitchen, it's no surprise that the plan [[GambitPileup goes completely tits-up]].
12
13	[[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant Keep in mind, this movie has nothing to do]] with ''Film/OnceUponATimeInTheWest'' or ''Film/OnceUponATimeInChina'', nor is it in any way related to ''Film/OnceUponATimeInAmerica'' (except perhaps as a ShoutOut - there's no question of the influence of Creator/SergioLeone's {{Spaghetti Western}}s on Rodriguez). It is also not related to ''Series/OnceUponATimeInWonderland''. [[OverlyLongGag Or]] ''Film/OnceUponATimeInHollywood''.
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15	----
16	!This film provides examples of:
17	* ActorAllusion: A month later, a character played by Johnny Depp will again use the phrase, "[[Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean Savvy]]".
18	* AffablyEvil: Sands is a callous and corrupt CIA agent who lets politicians get assassinated, plots to send an entire country into chaos for money, puts the lives of his own men in danger, murders people for extremely petty reasons and shoots innocent cooks because they cooked his favorite dish too well. However, he's a very whimsical person and his laid-back attitude makes him very likable.
19	* TheAlcoholic: Fideo.
20	-->"I don't think. I drink."
21	* AmusinglyAwfulAim: Subverted. After Agent Sands is blinded he is faced with two mooks. He starts shooting left and right, not anywhere near the mooks, in order to make them laugh, letting Sands know precisely where they are so he can shoot once again - this time accurately.
22	* ArcWords: "What do you want in life?"
23	* AssShove: A preoccupation of Sheldon Sands.
24	* TheAtoner: Billy Chambers.
25	* BadassBystander: The people of Mexico do not appreciate insurgents fucking up their home. And messing with their ''Presidente''.
26	* BadassCrew: El Mariachi and Co.
27	* BadBoss: It is implied that Barillo sent his piano teacher to be mutilated -- for being "condescending".
28	-->'''Chambers:''' You want me to break his fingers?
29	-->'''Barillo:''' No. I want you to cut them off.
30	-->'''Chambers:''' Hey, I was just makin' a joke.
31	-->'''Barillo:''' I wasn't.
32	* BarBrawl: In the flashback in the opening scene.
33	* BiblicalMotifs: In the commentary, Rodriguez says that the image of [[spoiler: Sands staggering around with his eyes put out and bloody 'tears' on his face]] was inspired by an image of Samson he once saw.
34	* BigBadDuumvirate: Armando Barillo and General Marquez.
35	* BlindWeaponmaster: [[spoiler: Sands]] after losing his eyes.
36	* BlownAcrossTheRoom: Oddly enough, it seems that the victim flies ''farther'' if he is shot with a ''smaller'' gun. Rifles and carbines cause people to crumple to the floor. El's shotgun sends men tumbling ass over kettle. And at one point, a wounded soldier is shot by what appears to be a holdout pistol and is literally sent sliding across the room.
37	** Played with in that El shoots a guy who is '''falling down off a balcony''', so this shot only accelerates him faster to the ground, and his death.
38	* BodyDouble: PlayedWith. [[spoiler: They find a man who generally resembles Barillo. Then they cut off his face and kill him to make it look like Barillo had died getting plastic surgery. Ramirez figures it out when he notices that Barillo's jewelry was poorly fitting on the body's fingers.]]
39	* BondVillainStupidity: Ajedrez leaves Sands alive to wander the streets of Culiacán City, albeit blind, then when they meet again she fails to notice that he is using his fake arm, allowing him to shoot her.
40	* BriefcaseFullOfMoney: {{Subverted}}: Through most of the movie, there is never enough money to change hands to fill a briefcase, so Sands puts it in lunch boxes. Which the money obviously ''still'' doesn't fill. [[spoiler: By the end of the movie, the Mariachis end up making off with a sum of money so large, it fills both of their guitar cases and ''still'' leaves enough for them to end up stuffing their shirts with it.]]
41	* BunnyEarsLawyer: Sands is a visibly eccentric character and often uses a pair of fake arms, which eventually [[ChekhovsGun turn out to be useful]]. [[spoiler: He uses them to shoot an informant under the table and one last time to kill Ajedrez.]]
42	* CaptainsLog: Ramirez was constantly giving a running commentary on what he was doing into a concealed tape recorder, presumably to be used as a record of what [[UnwittingPawn he thinks]] is a semi-legitimate investigation into a drug lord.
43	** If one assumes that he is the HeroOfAnotherStory (as he is presented in the movie), then this could very well be the source of the narration if he ''were'' the star. As it is, he ends up spending much of the movie talking to himself and [[LampshadeHanging commenting on]] whatever foolish thing he is about to do, as well as justifying the fact that he is explaining (to nobody in particular [[FourthWall other than the audience watching the movie]]) the significance of various minor details.
44	* CartwrightCurse: By now El Mariachi has had TWO love interests killed.
45	* ChekhovsGag: The prosthetic arm, which doesn't hold up to close scrutiny. Real-life spy work is a little harder than it's depicted in ''Get Smart''. [[spoiler: The joke's on Ajedrez, though, when Sands hides his real arm]]. The now-blind agent shoots her in the gut as she's taunting him.
46	* ChekhovsGunman: The little boy selling gum. [[spoiler: Incredibly useful when you've just been blinded.]]
47	* TheChessmaster: Sands, initially.
48	* ChurchShootout: The first big shootout that takes place in the present day.
49	* CIAEvilFBIGood: Sands is a complete jackass of a CIA agent who casually murders a cook who made his favorite dish too well [[EstablishingCharacterMoment within the same scene that introduces him]] and orchestrates the events that lead to the bloody coup attempt of the film's climax either [[ForTheEvulz for the hell of it]] or because the CIA has some greater scheme in place that requires the death of the President of Mexico (in the end, [[RiddleForTheAges it's left pretty abiguous]]). On the other hand, Ramirez is a heroic FBI Agent who is in Mexico to get revenge for a fallen friend who was murdered by the Barillo Cartel and is one of the many men who help save the life of the President in the GambitPileup of the climax, [[spoiler: killing Barillo himself]].
50	* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Agent Sands is just plain ''weird''.
51	* CombatPragmatist: Sands at first appears to be critical of bullfighting:
52	-->''The bull is stabbed, prodded, beaten. The bull is wounded. The bull is tired before the matador ever steps into the ring. Now, is that victory? Of course it is. Want to know the secret to winning? Creative sportsmanship. In other words, [[MovingTheGoalposts one has to rig the game]].''
53	* ComicallySmallDemand: Belini actually asks for less bribe money than Sands initially offers. Sands brings it, not in a [[BriefcaseFullOfMoney briefcase]], but a yellow lunchbox.
54	* CoversAlwaysLie - See the above picture with Creator/SalmaHayek in it? [[spoiler: She's not really a major character because she's DEAD in this film and only shows up in flashbacks.]] Johnny Depp's character is also of secondary importance to Antonio Banderas's, yet Depp is in the foreground.
55	* DashingHispanic: Any character played by Creator/AntonioBanderas, and El Mariachi is no exception.
56	* DeathByIrony: [[spoiler: Ajedrez.]] Killed due to [[spoiler: [[FailedASpotCheck failing to notice that a blind man had a third, fake arm.]]]]
57	* DeathOfAChild: El's daughter is killed prior to the movie's events.
58	* DidntSeeThatComing: Said by the source of it: "You really didn't see it coming, did you?"
59	* DirtyCop: [[spoiler: Ajedrez.]]
60	* TheDogBitesBack: Billy Chambers started working for the Barillo Cartel after fleeing the United States only because he had nowhere else to go; he confesses to Agent Ramirez that he's got nothing to show for his fugitive years except his dog, the clothes on his back, and a litany of crimes even more unspeakable than what he did in the States. At the end, when Agent Ramirez corners Barillo and his MadDoctor:
61	-->'''Barillo''': ''(to Chambers)'' You're just going to stand there?\
62	'''Chambers''': I'm afraid anything but standing's going to cost you extra.
63	* DualWielding: During the chuch shoot-out, the Mariachi wields a Rossi Overland Sawed Off Shotgun and an Iver Johnson Enforcer Pistol.
64	* EvenEvilHasStandards:
65	** There is one ridiculous scene in this movie where during a shootout in a church, everyone pauses for a few moments because an old lady who is the only person there besides the shooters all of a sudden gets up and decides to leave. She walks out as everyone stares at her; she is completely oblivious to the fact that just a few moments ago, bullets were flying everywhere and people were dying. She must've been blind and deaf, because without that excuse her behavior definitely qualifies as TooDumbToLive. That or this is nothing new to her.
66	** One of the mooks guarding Agent Ramirez is uncomfortable with torturing him. He [[GroinAttack had a bad experience]] that really turned him off to the whole thing.
67	* EvilIsPetty: Marin's character thinks he's smart: he explains to Sands that he intentionally low-balled his fee since no one would ever kill somebody over such a trifling amount. We'll never know if Marin was right, as Sands kills him anyway in a fit of pique, then pockets ''his'' cash and cocaine. And kills the completely-innocent waitress who accidentally spilled a glass of water. And the chef because he made the dish Sands ordered ''too well''. Dick.
68	* EvilMakesYouUgly: [[spoiler: Barillo, post-surgery.]]
69	* EvilVsEvil: Sands is betrayed by [[spoiler: Ajedrez, who is even more evil than he, and has his eyes removed. He is left alive to stumble around for the rest of the movie with blood seeping out of his eye sockets]]. Sands refuses to just leave it at that, and pursues [[spoiler: Ajedrez]] to the Presidential Palace for a rematch. Despite being shot multiple times in the legs, he emerges victorious.
70	* EyeScream: [[spoiler: Poor Sands.]] If you want to know, [[spoiler: he got his ''eyes [[ThisIsADrill drilled]] out'', and near the end we get to see his empty sockets. Fun. You get to see the approaching drill from Sands' point of view.]]
71	** Then again, he ''is'' a complete dick, [[LaserGuidedKarma so he kind of has it coming...]]
72	* FaceHeelTurn: [[spoiler: Cucuy]], though he wasn’t a good guy by any means to begin with. [[RewardedAsATraitorDeserves It doesn't work out too well for him, though, as Barillo has him garroted to death]].
73	* FailedASpotCheck: [[spoiler: Ajedrez fails to notice that Sands evidently has three arms. And to think ''he'' was the blind one.]]
74	* FinalBattle: The entire Day of the Dead sequence is one, where the people of Mexico fight back against Marquez's forces, while El Mariachi saves the President and goes after Barillo and Marquez.
75	* {{Fingore}}: Discussed in regards to Barillo's piano teacher.
76	-->'''Billy:''' You want me to break his fingers?
77	-->'''Barillo:''' No. I want you to chop them off.
78	-->'''Billy:''' I was making a joke.
79	-->'''Barillo:''' I wasn't.
80	* FirebreathingWeapon: Lorenzo has a flamethrower [[SenselessViolins disguised as a guitar case]].
81	* ForTheEvulz: Sands kills a chef just because he believes the guy made his favorite dish of slow-roasted pulled pork too perfectly - and then justifies it as "maintaining balance." He also sabotages a bullfight by rigging the bullfighter's suit with an electric charge that paralyses the man long enough for him to be gored to death so that Sands could profit off of betting on the bull.
82	** Although left ambiguous, the possibility is obvious that the CIA actually wants to prevent the assassination, and Sands is letting it happen because "why not?"
83	* {{Foreshadowing}}: Sands tells the boy selling gum that he "...never want[s] to see your face again." [[spoiler: He later has to rely upon the kid to be his eyes after his eyes are taken away]].
84	* FunTShirt: Sands wears a great variety of obnoxious touristy T-shirts throughout the film--Creator/JohnnyDepp thought the character would be the type to wear them and asked his sister to look around her hometown in Florida for the worst ones.
85	** He wears one that says "I'm with Stupid" (with an arrow pointing down) [[{{Foreshadowing}} while visiting]] the local FemmeFatale.
86	** He wears a [[HiddenInPlainSight "CIA" shirt]] at the bullfight. It actually reads "[[AllMenArePerverts Cleavage Inspection Agency]]".
87	* GambitPileup: We have Sands' plan to manipulate Mexico's politics, Marquez's and Barillo's plan to perform a coup d'etat, Barillo's own plan to [[FakingTheDead fake his death]], El Mariachi's RoaringRampageOfRevenge aiming for Marquez, and that's just the biggest players in the board.
88	* GratuitousSpanish: Most of the dialogue is presumably in Spanish via TranslationConvention, but some words are kept in Spanish, presumably for flavor, or for words that don't carry their connotations through a translation.
89	* GroinAttack: Done to two mooks during Mariachi's escape from Marquez's compound by grabbing and twisting, complete with some rather unsettling sound effects. '''OUCH'''.
90	** El Mariachi threatens one with a SawedOffShotgun to a {{Mook}} at point blank range.
91	-->'''El Mariachi:''' What do you want from life?
92	-->[{{Mook}} drops his gun]
93	* GunsAkimbo: While not as prominent as in the last movie, the Mariachi does do his share of this, often with different guns in hand rather than a matched pair.
94	* HandicappedBadass: Sands, who is evidently willing to let mooks take potshots at his limbs just to echolocate them and blow them away.
95	* HeartbrokenBadass: El Mariachi
96	* HeelFaceTurn: Sands becomes significantly nicer after [[spoiler: having his eyes gouged out]].
97	** [[spoiler:Billy Chambers helps Ramirez take down Dr. Guevara, but at the cost of his own life]].
98	* HeroOfAnotherStory: Former FBI Agent Ramirez.
99	* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Sands' plot backfires spectacularly on him.
100	* HurricaneOfPuns: Pretty much any time anyone talks to [[spoiler: Agent Sands]] after he loses both of his eyes.
101	-->''See anything you like?''
102	-->'''[[BaitAndSwitchGunshot BANG]]''' ''[[BondOneLiner ...No.]]''
103	* IdiotBall: Many characters are guilty of holding the ball over the course of this film, most egregiously [[spoiler: Ajedrez. She leaves Sands alive to wander the streets of Culiacán City, albeit blind, then when they meet again she fails to notice that he is using his fake arm, allowing him to shoot her]].
104	* IfICantHaveYou: Marquez's motivation for pursuing [[spoiler:and ultimately killing]] Carolina.
105	* ImprobableAimingSkills: [[spoiler:Sands]] manages to kill a total of three mooks [[spoiler: while blind. He first fires a number of wildly inaccurate shots, then when the mooks laugh at him, he zeroes in on the sound.]]
106	* ImprobableWeaponUser: El Mariachi, Lorenzo, and Fideo.
107	* InstrumentOfMurder: As part of the [[ShroudedInMyth admittedly embellished]] story Belini tells Sands, El Mariachi wields an electric guitar machine gun.
108	* TheKetchupTest
109	* KickTheDog: Cucuy's henchmen shoot the old guitar-maker for no discernible reason. Cucuy later threatens to do the same thing to Mariachi's entire village after switching sides from Sands to Barillo, which is about the point where Mariachi decides he's had enough of him and his men and decides to kill them all.
110	** Sands himself shoots the cook of a restaurant because he cooked Sands' favorite dish too WELL. His reasoning was that if this one guy cooked it so great, Sands would never enjoy it cooked by anyone else, so he kills him to "restore the balance." Sands also murders a waitress for no particular reason.
111	** Barillo orders Billy Chambers (as opposed to the rest of his army of mooks) to hurt and kill people specifically because of Billy’s distaste for violence.
112	* KillItWithFire: One of the mariachis has a flamethrower disguised as a guitar.
113	* {{Kneecapping}}: Mariachi blows both of Marquez's kneecaps out with his sawed-off just before delivering the killshot to the head.
114	* KubrickStare: El Mariachi is a master of it.
115	* LickedByTheDog: Billy Chambers's [[MoralityPet Chihuahua]]. Literally.
116	* LegendaryInTheSequel: This film considers El Mariachi a legendary badass.
117	* MadDoctor: Dr. Guevara, who not only specializes in face transplants but also sidelines as a TortureTechnician. [[spoiler:He's the guy who takes Sands's eyes]].
118	* MeaningfulName: Ajedrez, which means "chess," foreshadowing her [[spoiler: strategic manipulation of Sands. May also be a pseudonym to cover up the fact that she's Barillo's daughter.]]
119	* TheMole:
120	** [[spoiler: Ajedrez]].
121	** The President's unnamed advisor is working for Sands and (indirectly) Barillo and Marquez. It’s nothing new for him either, as he says, "He is not the first prince I’ve served, nor is he the first one I’ve betrayed.
122	** Ramirez bribes Billy Chambers into a HeelFaceTurn by promising that he would be allowed to return to the United States. [[spoiler: He lied.]] To be fair, [[spoiler: he wasn't lying out of villainy. He just didn't have that kind of power anymore. Had he lived, it's possible Sands could've worked out a deal for him.]]
123	* MolotovCocktail: One of the many weapons used by Mexican [[BadassBystander partisans]] to hurt the soldiers attempting the coup.
124	* MoreDakka: A couple of the townspeople convert a taco stand into a rolling mount for a [[BreakOutTheMuseumPiece Hotchkiss machine gun]].
125	* MumblingBrando: Depp did a good one here.
126	* MythologyGag: Billy's chihuahua is called [[Film/ElMariachi Moco]].
127	* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed:
128	** For his cameo as a priest, Creator/JohnnyDepp does a Creator/MarlonBrando impression.
129	** Barillo is a lot like the Mexican drug lord Amado Carrillo Fuentes , who actually died during a cosmetic procedure to alter his image as he was being pursued by both Mexican and US law enforcement agencies
130	* OffTheShelfFX: [[spoiler: When Sands is blinded, the blood was created using a mixture of Hershey's strawberry and chocolate syrup]].
131	* OvertOperative: Agent Sands makes no secret of the fact that he works for the CIA. Lampshaded at one point, where he wears a t-shirt on which is printed the words "C.I.A.: Cleavage Inspection Agency".
132	* PantsPositiveSafety: Sands keeps a backup pistol down the front of his pants. Which he takes out by unzipping his fly.
133	* PetTheDog: Billy Chambers is genuinely fond of his dog [[spoiler: and even sacrifices himself to save it.]]
134	** Sands is protective of the kid [[spoiler: who is helping him after Sands gets blinded.]]
135	* ThePlan: Sands thinks he can pull one off, but [[OutGambitted it crashes]] [[GambitPileup and burns]].
136	* PistolWhipping
137	* RealLifeWritesThePlot: [[spoiler:Carolina is only appears in flashbacks on account of being killed off because Creator/SalmaHayek was busy starring in ''Film/{{Frida}}'']].
138	* RedemptionEqualsDeath: [[spoiler: Billy Chambers]]
139	* RetiredBadass: Ramirez. Also El Mariachi, technically.
140	* RetiredMonster: Billy Chambers is wanted for unspecified serious crimes in the United States, but only works for Barillo because he has nowhere else to go. He hates Barillo and the things he forces him to do and would happily face justice in America to get away from him.
141	* RefugeInAudacity: Sands is a CIA agent... who wears a "CIA" ([[FunTShirt Cleavage Investigation Agency]]} T-shirt.
142	* {{Revenge}}: Key motive for El Mariachi and Ramirez. Also, arguably, [[spoiler: for Sands]] towards the end.
143	* TheRevolutionWillNotBeVilified: Both averted and played straight. The conspirators attempting the coup d'etat are clearly evil, but [[BadassBystander the Mexican people rise]] against them to defend their president.
144	* RogueAgent: It's not clear how much Sands is working under the CIA's direction vs doing his own thing to "restore balance." At the very least, he improvises after getting burned in the final act.
145	** Ramirez is a retired FBI agent who ''thinks'' he's been recruited by the CIA for an important mission, but it's pretty clear that he's a patsy. He ends up making the best of it when things spin out of control.
146	* RuleOfCool: This film practically runs on it.
147	* SeanConneryIsAboutToShootYou: Sands on the DVD cover.
148	* SenselessViolins: It wouldn't be a ''Mariachi'' movie without guitar cases full of guns.
149	* ShoutOut:
150	** [[spoiler:Sands, blinded, blood running down his face, wielding a machine pistol]] - a very obvious reference to Kiriyama's final scene in ''Film/BattleRoyale''.
151	** Creator/QuentinTarantino suggested the film title, pointing out that this film could be compared to Creator/SergioLeone's ''Film/OnceUponATimeInTheWest''.
152	** There are a few references to ''ComicBook/SinCity'', which Creator/RobertRodriguez filmed after this movie. First, when Sands shoots Ajedrez in the stomach after getting kissed by her, it's an identical picture from "A Dame To Kill For". Earlier in the movie, when Barillo makes Sands blind, there is almost an exact picture from "Hell And Back". Other similarities are the scene with El Mariachi and the priest in the confessional booth (as seen in "The Hard Goodbye") and the subplot involving facial reconstruction (as seen in "A Dame to Kill For").
153	** For the final confrontation, Sands as a cowboy, dressed in all black, is a direct homage to ''Film/ElTopo''. Sands is blinded, bleeds out of his eyes, is left for dead and undergoes a transformation. El Topo also goes through a transformation, as he is shot stigmata-style, bleeds out of his wounds and is left for dead.
154	* SmugSnake: Sands seems to think that everything will go his way and acts as such. [[spoiler: It doesn't.]]
155	* ShootTheBuilder: In an example that is [[EvilIsPetty more petty than usual]], part of Agent Sands' EstablishingCharacterMoment is him deciding that, after he's done eating a plate of his favorite type of Mexican food, he will go to the restaurant's kitchen and kill the cook because he made the plate ''too well''. Sands explains it to Marín, he believes that a plate this good disrupts the universe's balance in some way, and by killing the cook he will restore it. He then proceeds to do so after killing Marín for trying to betray him, plus an innocent waitress for being a witness/spilling water.
156	* SuddenSequelDeathSyndrome: Sorry, Carolina, but this franchise requires that our hero be in a perpetual state of seething anguish, so you had to go. At least she gets one last action sequence (in flashback) before she dies.
157	* TearsOfBlood: See EyeScream
158	* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: So, so often.
159	* ThinkingOutLoud: Sands with his "Walking My Beat" monologue, Ramirez ''appears'' to be doing this if you forget that he's literally monologing everything he is doing into a tape recorder.
160	* ThirdActStupidity: The movie would have ended a lot sooner had El Cucuy used a real gun rather than a dart launcher.
161	* TheVamp: Agent Ajedrez
162	* TortureAlwaysWorks: When Ramirez gets captured, a pair of mooks discuss if they should torture the ex-FBI agent. One argues against it: "I was tortured once. I didn't like it. You know what the really fucked up part was? They tore out my left nut. That really turned me off to the whole thing."
163	* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Sands will kill for ''puerco pibil.''
164	** Actually, he kills [[spoiler:when he finds a chef who cooks it TOO well]]. Sands is obsessed with the idea of "maintaining the balance" in Mexico, which involves screwing up the nation's politics as well as its restaurant industry...
165	* TrilogyCreep: Creator/RobertRodriguez originally planned to just leave it as a duology. It was Creator/QuentinTarantino who suggested making it a trilogy, in homage to Creator/SergioLeone.
166	* UnInstallment: Inspired by the realization that many viewers of ''Film/{{Desperado}}'' did not originally know that the movie was a sequel to ''Film/ElMariachi'', and thus were confused by the numerous unexplained but obviously important flashbacks, this movie includes ''many'' references to important events that took place in a movie that never happened, [[spoiler: such as the murder of El's wife and daughter.]]
167	* WhyDontYaJustShootHim - ''So many times''. Beneficiaries include Sands, El Mariachi, and Ramirez.
168	* YouHaveFailedMe: In a scene deleted from the film, Marquez shoots the aide informing him of El’s escape.
169	* YourOtherLeft: When Sands is blind shooting at the thug following him and the "Chicle boy" and aiming based on the latter's directions.
170	-->'''Sands:''' Was that my right or your right?
171	-->'''Chicle Boy:''' Mi derecha.
172	-->'''Sands:''' [[OhCrap Oh]].
173

Context Film / OnceUponATimeInMexico