When I walked out of the theater after seeing the new Julia Roberts and Brad Pitt flick, I was quite disappointed.

I didn't have any great expectations for this film. It had a meager Hollywood budget ($15 million), a fairly new director (this was his second feature film), yet it had two big name actors and the trailer seemed like it had potential.

As the closing credits began to roll and the lights came on in the theater, all I could think was, "Great, I have to write another bad review."

I love movies — there's no denying it. I also love movie reviewing. But lately I have seen a lot of bad movies, The Mexican being one of them.

The Mexican tells the story of Jerry (Pitt), a dim-witted gangster who is desperately trying to complete his last job — successfully transporting an ancient Mexican gun across the border.

The legendary gun, known as the Mexican, is being heavily pursued. While Jerry is in Mexico retrieving the gun, his neurotic girlfriend, Samantha (Roberts), is kidnapped so that the gun may be used as ransom.

Known for his role as the lead character, Tony Soprano Sr., in the HBO series The Sopranos, James Gandolfini plays Samantha's gay kidnapper.

I didn't think any of the actors were believable in their respective roles. It may be speculated that Pitt took this role in an effort to avoid being typecast, but Pitt as a bumbling idiot just wasn't working for me.

"We've seen Brad be cool in so many movies, and this was really about him being kind of a dork," said director Gore Verbinski in a press release. "What was great about Brad taking on the part was that he was so willing to explore that side of the character."

Let's face it though — Brad Pitt is not a dork, he's cool. Being a dork is just not a role that he can pull off.

I've seen Roberts in so many different movies that the slightest similarity in movements or scenes suddenly sends me flashing back to a similar scene in Mystic Pizza, Pretty Woman or My Best Friend's Wedding. The biggest difference in this film was her new shorter haircut.

The pistol, which is the film's namesake, is really a character in itself, and, like the others in the film, it was also lacking.

The story of the Mexican is told through a series of flashbacks, filmed like an old silent movie. Unfortunately, I thought The Mexican made ineffective use of this cool cinematic effect.

However, The Mexican's saving grace was the cinematography and editing. A good portion of the film was shot on location in Real de Catorce, Mexico. The small town lent its authenticity and streetscapes to the story.

The Mexican really didn't have an engaging story — it poses the question, "If you love someone, when do you give up?"

The answer, of course, is never. It takes a couple of murders and being on the run from a mob for Jerry and Samantha to figure this one out.

Their epiphany wasn't worth the $8 and two hours I spent on The Mexican.