‘El Mariachi’

Robert Rodriguez’s sly and hilarious 1992 film stars Carlos Gallardo in the title role as an itinerant musician who happens into a Mexican border town only to be mistaken for a hit man. The wanted hit man carries his weapons in a guitar case virtually identical to the mariachi’s. The way in which the 24 year-old director sustains Gallardo’s plight from one shenanigan to the next is inspired, and the film, which has been said to have been made for a mere $7,000, never flags for an instant. Shot in Spanish by the Austin, Tex., filmmaker, it is a sensational debut film (Cinemax Wednesday at 8 p.m.).