¡THREE AMIGOS! 1986
46%
Directed by John Landis
Written by Lorne Michaels, Randy Newman, Steve Martin
Starring Steve Martin, Chevy Chase, Martin Short, Alfonso Arau, Patrice Martinez
Synopsis
Three clueless silent-film stars head down to Mexico for what they assume is a big-budget shoot. What awaits them is a throng of villagers thinking they’re real-life heroes who will save their town from a band of terrorists.
Why We Love It
“Does this remind you of your childhood?”
“It reminds me of ¡Three Amigos! with Steve Martin and Chevy Chase.”
“Thank you, Oscar. That means a lot.”
That exchange is from The Office, when manager Michael Scott throws a Mexican-themed welcome- back work party for one of his employees. And an oblivious-yet-likeable character like Michael Scott would love this movie (and take Oscar’s not-so-subtle dig as a sincere compliment). It’s broad, sunny, silly stuff, the kind of movie beloved by the sort of dude who makes cringe-worthy dad jokes.
Helmed by John Landis (An American Werewolf in London, Animal House, The Blues Brothers), ¡Three Amigos! was a box-office (and critical) failure back in 1986 and is the first of an unofficial trilogy of movies about actors facing IRL danger that also includes Galaxy Quest and Tropic Thunder. It’d be easy (and, to be fair, pretty accurate) to deride ¡Three Amigos!—which follows a triad of Hollywood stars going south of the border to revive their careers—as culturally insensitive. But keep in mind: these La La Land fishes-out-of-water are morons, and the joke is clearly always on them. (Just look to the stars’ misunderstanding of “infamous,” which leads to their ill-fated trip down south.)
Without its considerable comic chemistry, ¡Three Amigos! would, indeed, be a forgettable misfire. But each of the three leads perfectly pinball off each other’s sensibilities. Martin Short, in his second feature, is all wide-eyed and guileless, showing off his penchant for broad comedy and vaudevillian theatrics. Chevy Chase is at his dry-delivery best, throwing out lines like “Do you have anything besides Mexican food?” And Steve Martin, as the group’s leader, is clearly having a blast playing the slow-on-the-uptake showbiz egotist. As icing on the cake, cowriter Randy Newman’s songs give the project an additional dose of old-Hollywood charm.
In a bit of life-imitating-art silliness, Short was convinced by his castmates to show up at the film’s premiere decked out in his bejeweled mariachi-esque getup. Of course, the joke was on him, and he was the only actor who dressed up. How appropriately hilarious.