Star power doesn't get much brighter than the megawatt pairing of Julia Roberts and Brad Pitt in The Mexican.

Expectations understandably run high that this is going to be another of Roberts' bright and sassy romantic comedies.

Stop right there.

The Mexican is no Notting Hill, Runaway Bride or even that subversive Roberts' comedy My Best Friend's Wedding.

The Mexican is a comedy caper movie that has shades of Sam Peckinpah's Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia.

In that 1974 revenge drama, an unsuspecting musician gets involved with Mexican gangsters and bounty hunters.

As ever, Peckinpah was deadly serious.

With The Mexican, director Gore Verbinski wants to layer his violent opus with comedy. Pitt plays Jerry Welbach, a loveable loser who owes his soul to a mobster played by an uncredited superstar.

In a freak accident, Jerry rammed the gangster's car. When the police arrived on the scene they discovered a body in the trunk and the mob boss was sent to jail.

As compensation, Jerry was forced to become a bag man for the mobster's cronies. The big problem is that Jerry keeps bungling most of his assignments.

Jerry promises his girlfriend Samantha (Roberts) that he's finished with this flirtation with crime but his boss insists he do one more job.

Jerry has to go to Mexico and retrieve a legendary pistol known as the Mexican.

Sounds simple enough except that more than one person wants that pistol and more than one person wants Jerry dead.

Meanwhile back in America, Samantha is dodging her own share of bullets. Two different hit men have been sent out by their respective (but definitely not respectable bosses) to kidnap Samantha to convince Jerry to deliver the gun to their camps.

Samantha becomes the hostage of Leroy (James Gandolfini) whose reputation as a cold-blooded killer is as legendary as the pistol Jerry is after.

After a hilarious screaming match before Jerry heads out for Mexico and Samantha for Las Vegas, Pitt and Roberts don't share the screen until the final 15 minutes. The Mexican may star Pitt and Roberts but it hardly teams them.

Roberts' leading man is actually Gandolfini and that's the best thing the movie has going for it.

Samantha and Leroy's little road trip to Las Vegas provides the film's gentle laughs while Jerry's mayhem in Mexico offers guffaws and howls. As Leroy quickly learns, Samantha is no ordinary hostage. At first she's a real hellion but eventually she becomes a friend and confident.

Even when Gandolfini reveals Leroy's sensitive side he is able to sustain the man's menacing nature. Leroy may have a big heart but he's still a killer for hire.

Roberts continues to demonstrate what a skilled comedienne she is. This is no one-note caricature but a carefully orchestrated performance.

Pitt reveals Jerry's mounting frustration with a kind of disbelieving petulance.

Jerry doesn't have much cool to begin with and he loses very quickly.

The biggest problem with The Mexican is that it keeps switching tones. Samantha and Leroy have a tender moment only to be followed by bodies being thrown from windows or peppered with bullets.

Back in Mexico, Jerry stumbles over his share of corpses.

The Mexican is a fun movie but it's often irresponsible fun.

(This film is rated AA)

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