Simply A Masterpiece

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

It's just such a shame that all this talent goes to waste in one of the worst all-star films ever made. Cantiflas had made a huge splash just a few years before in Hollywood with the film version of "Around the World in 80 Days", and American audiences took the innocent Mexican comic to their hearts. But his follow-up English speaking film was a disaster, and has practically disappeared.The story focuses on his desperate attempts to get to Hollywood to find his mule which was taken from him by mistake in Mexico. Along the way, he encounters a ton of Hollywood stars who, as themselves, aid him in his search. Then, there's Shirley Jones as a juvenile delinquent he hooks up with. Obviously, she was determined to get away from the sweet parts she played in "Oklahoma!", "Carousel" and "April Love" by playing tougher characters, and while she scored with an Oscar for "Elmer Gantry", in this case, she ended up with a real "Pepe Le Peu". Dan Dailey, a former movie star playing a current fictional movie star, ends up with Cantiflas's best friend, but unfortunately, there's nobody there to sweep up after the invisible stench the film leaves behind.A few of the cameos are amusing (elderly Billie Burke shooting Charles Coburn with a slingshot; Jack Lemmon confusing Cantiflas by dressing up as his "Some Like It Hot" drag character), but most of them are silly and seem self-gratifying. Edward G. Robinson provides the heart for the film's cameos as himself, showing great sympathy to Cantiflas who deserves it for putting up with this lame script that could have been wrapped up in 90 minutes rather than its more than three hours. For some reason, this ended up with a ton of technical Oscar nominations, as well as one for the not bad "Far Away Part of Town" which Judy Garland is heard singing on a radio program. Books on Hollywood's biggest disasters usually list this, and I can't think of any other award that it deserved as much.

It's really hard to rate this movie. On the one hand, it's a true time capsule of 1960..every mega star is here..including practically the whole rat pack. On the other hand , this is a an extremely corny movie about a man and his donkey.What is really painful to watch is what the movie does to the Cantinflas persona. In his Mexican movies, he is street smart but with a sentimental side. Sort of a Mexican Little Tramp. In his Mexican movies this persona became more and more sentimental and less street smart as years went by. But nothing can prepare you for this movie. In it, the Cantinflas persona becomes a virtual moron. He is such an ignorant fool it is almost painful to watch.I remember seeing this movie with my grandmother and mother at the old Radio City theater in Santurce. I was a boy expecting a Cantinflas movie and was surprised to see a movie like this. Still I have fond memories and I feel that the movie deserves a DVD release. In fact this movie doesn't even show up on AMC or TCM. And its a shame because this movie is an interesting way to go back to 1960.

Now that I have read some put downs, I need to respond.This movie 'PEPE' (1960) George Sidney, was just what tens of thousands of other movies is, and are supposed to do, that is to give you an escape.Give you an escape from everyday blaze. It's funny, musical, short on a fabulous plot but wonderful to watch especially if you like to dream that maybe some small unknown would be able to brush elbows with the stars of the era, and save his ('son' as he says) to boot. What's so bad about that?? I'm sorry "Mario Moreno Reyes" Cantinflas did not get a fair shake from Hollywood he had such potential. In my book this is a must see.

Cantinflas plays a sweet Everyman with dreams of rising above his work as a rodeo (well, bullfight) clown through successful management of the beautiful stallion, Don Juan. Possible Spoiler Comments follow. Make no mistake about the point of this movie...it is a horse movie that equestrians will enjoy simply for the stunning stallion. The movie star cameos and high-power leads are just a bonus. The formula is one familiar to all horse lovers who read the books and watch the movies: wholesome person (child, innocent, or virtuous adult) needs horse, loses horse, conquers adversity, gains horse. The colorful settings and many celebrities fill out the story with fun, such as the "Tequila" drunken dream sequence. Like the Kim N. fan, I've sat through this film multiple times during the original run and many times since then, as much to see the horse as for the Hollywood legends.