Bandidas

Bandidas is the film where the two most famous latina stars of Hollywood, Penelope Cruz and Salma Hayek, team up as a dynamite cowgirl duo fighting evil in Mexico, 1888.
There has been a large negative buzz about this film which is a bit unfair. Bandidas is just not to be taken seriously and is just good old entertainment where you have to have your sense of humor switched on. If you are expecting a serious western-drama, you have to look someplace else.

The film, which was releashed in cinemas all over Europe in January and March 2006, wasn't a huge hit. The thing with people was that they were expecting something without so much humour but did get that, which dissapointed them. The humour is indeed a bit too much sometimes, but there are some hilarious moments in the film that are absolutely enjoyable.
The chemistry between Cruz and Hayek is delicious and you can see in the way they are acting that they had a fun time on the set making the film. Next to Cruz and Hayek there is Steve Zahn. Zahn does what he does best: playing a comedic sidekick. He is funny and plays his part well. Dwight Yoakam feels a bit miscast in the film but he does an okay job as the main villian.
There is some drama in the film that feels a bit outnumberd compairing it with the comedic moments which gives the film a kind of messy feeling sometimes. That is too bad, but overall doesn't bother you.

The film has been professionally made and looks good. The special effects, the lush Mexican locations and cameramovements are beautifully done which gives great cinematography. Also the music, composed by Eric Serra is very nice and gives some scenes a nice powerboost and a fun western flavour.

Still the best reason to buy the film are two elements: Cruz and Hayek. They are sexy, funny and make the film worth to take a look at. Some things are a bit over the top, but who cares: it entertains, and it is nice to kill 1 and a half hours of boredom and replace that with nice popcorn fun.
And most importantly: Bandidas leaves you with a smile on your face, and that is what entertainment is all about.

I'm going to be honest with you folks, if this western spoof about good-girls-turned-bankrobbers featured, let's say, Cameron Diaz and Kate Beckinsale instead of Salma Hayek and Penelope Cruz, I wouldn't have given it a second thought.

Set in 1880s Mexico, Sara Sandoval (Salma Hayek), a banker's daughter, and Maria Alvarez (Penelope Cruz), a poor farmer's one, have nothing in common but their Mexican heritage and a desire for revenge on the American railroad interests who've sent a thug named Tyler Jackson (played country music superstar Dwight Yoakam) to steal the locals' land, and in the process kill Sara's father and seriously injure Maria's.

You'll have to do much suspension of disbelief and be in a goofy mood for this movie:
On the run from Jackson's men, Sara and Maria enlist the services of veteran bankrobber (Sam Shepard) to teach them all that he knows. Afterwards and bumbling their way through holdups, the ladies attempt to blackmail a Sherlock Holmes wannabe NYPD detective (an extremely miscast Steve Zahn), who is also the fiance of the railroad owner's daughter; however, being at heart nice sweet gals, Sara and Maria instead resort to a much more effective style of 'friendly persuasion' to enlist the dorky-but-crafty New York cop.

BANDIDAS has its moments of cliff hangers and hilarious situations, but overall falls flat, leaving an ending which more than hints at an intended sequel. Still, I've wasted 2 hours on worse product. Salma Hayek's beauty, Penelope Cruz's grace, and a very cool and really smart horse didn't make this movie so bad to watch after all.

If you like action movies with comedy, you'll like this. I liked Salma Hayek's performance in Ugly Betty, so I picked this up at the video store. It's basically a cowboy movie set in Mexico, with Salma Hayek and Penelope Cruz as the partner cowboys robbing banks to save their people. I thought the action and comedy were really well done. Salma Hayek is a rich heiress, newly returned from a European education to her banker father's Mexican home. Penelope Cruz is a Mexican farm girl with an affinity for horses and guns. Some bad guys come into the story and force the farmers to sell their farms for 1 peso, or be shot (or both). Salma and Penelope's fathers get murdered/injured by the bad guys and the two ladies go on the road for some revenge. They rob the bad guy's banks and give the money to support the displaced Mexican people. Salma and Penelope get training in bank robbing, come up with some hilarious schemes to rob armed banks, and even get the crime scene investigator to help them rob banks. The story is set in a beautiful Mexican (I think it's actually shot entirely in Mexico) landscape where the people are good and honest, and the bad guys are out to swindle them. Salma and Penelope, needless to say, are beautiful and hilarious. Their outfits are particularly attractive and they have some great comedic stunts. There's one part that's probably not suitable for children though - at one point the two ladies dress up in brothel dance outfits and take scandalous photos with a unclothed bound man (for purely blackmail purposes). There's a cute dog, a smart horse who can even go up ladders, and lots of beautiful shots of scenery, horses and great music. The movie has a lot of slapstick comedy, two heart-of-gold heroines who bicker with each other, and enough action (gunfights, explosions and horse riding) to keep my husband happy. If you're looking for a comedic action movie with heart in a beautiful historical setting, this is it.