Back in April 2007, film directors Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez collaborated on a film called Grindhouse. The film was essentially two small feature films and in between the films were fake movie trailers. One of those fake trailers was for a film called Machete. It caught everyone’s attention with its over-the-top violence and humor. Ever since then, fans of Grindhouse pleaded to Rodriguez to actually make the trailer into an actual feature film. After a long three and a half years, Rodriguez finally got the opportunity in his schedule to direct the feature film with the help of first-time co-director, Ethan Maniquis.
The film is about an ex-federale named Machete who is betrayed and set-up by his superior, resulting in his wife and child being murdered by a drug kingpin named Torrez. Years later, he resurfaces in Texas to try and start a new life as a day laborer. One day, he gets hired by a mysterious man to assassinate a senator who is an extreme advocate against illegal immigration. During the job, he is once again betrayed and set-up. Machete then plots his revenge against the men who’ve wronged him with the help of resistance fighter, an immigration agent, and a shotgun-wielding priest.
As you can tell by the plot summary, this film isn’t supposed to be taken seriously. Like Grindhouse, Machete is styled as an exploitation film and is very tongue-in-cheek. Since it’s not being taken seriously, the film takes advantage of the freedom to do whatever it wants in terms of violence, nudity, and language. Even though it’s self-aware, it still contains a strong social commentary underneath with the illegal immigration issue.
Danny Trejo’s performance as Machete was simply superb. It was clear throughout the film that this was the role Trejo was born to play. He’s able to show the furious side of Machete extremely well and brings the film to a whole new level. Robert De Niro does a decent job as well with his performance as Senator McLaughlin. He really brings out the outlandish right-wing politician character and proves that he still hasn’t lost his acting ability. Even Lindsay Lohan has a small supporting role as April Booth, a drug-addled socialite. Unfortunately, her performance is pretty lifeless.
The overall story is simply ridiculous and fun. The action alone in this film will guarantee that the audience will never experience a dull moment from start to finish. The music score in the film is highly original and coordinates perfectly. Robert Rodriguez and Ethan Maniquis did a terrific job with the direction and created a perfect homage to the exploitation sub-genre
There are definitely many moments in Machete that make your jaw drop down to the ground. Those moments are what truly make the film stand out from any other film this year. If you don’t mind the extreme violence, then I definitely recommend checking it out before it leaves the theater.
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Tags: Danny Trejo, Ethan Maniquis, Machete, Movie Review, Robert De Niro, Robert Rodriguez, September 2010
He is back!!!!! Glad you enjoyed Machete, I must say I haven’t seek it out because I was so badly disappointed with The Expendables. I think I will wait for the DVD because there is so many movies I plan to see in the upcoming weeks I will just save the dough now
De Niro as a Tea Party Senator has my curiosity piqued, but it’s the Don Johnson-Cheech Marin reunion that makes me want to see it.
Hey, look who is back! Nice write up. Sounds like fun. I will surely catch on DVD. Nice new layout too….
Hey Dan, welcome back! I don’t think Machete is my cup of tea, but nice writeup anyways. Oh yeah, nice, clean layout too.
While I adore RR, there’s just something about this that kept me at bay. Like Castor, maybe it was my disappointment in The Expendables. Regardless I loved Planet Terror and while Death Proof was took too long to get to the payoff, I still kind of enjoyed it too.
So I’ll ask, is it more comparable to Planet Terror or better?? If so I’ll seek this out and expect to have tons of over-the-top fun:)
That’s exactly what I would compare it to.
Finally! Someone else who liked this movie! I keep reading reviews from people who said it should have stayed a trailer or that it wasn’t entertaining. Maybe they watched a different film than I did? It’s about damn time Danny Trejo got a starring role in something. Character parts are all well and good, but a man’s gotta eat! He made the film, as did Cheech Marin. The whole thing is lots of trashy fun without much of a point, but sometimes that’s enough.
Exactly! The film isn’t suppose to be taken seriously, it’s all in good fun!