: Machete
Director: Robert Rodriguez
Probably not for everyone’s taste, but I enjoyed this a lot. If you liked Grindhouse you’ll like this (you’ll remember this film came from one of the fake movie trailers within that film). It’s ultra-everything — violence, sex, acting — it’s just over-the-top fun. It’s like the coolest late night movie ever. The plot surprised me by being more complicated than I expected. I thought it was a simple revenge flick (Machete going after the people who killed his family), but the story involves a corrupt politician and the Texas border war. It’s really too convoluted at times and the film’s probably 20-30 minutes too long. There are also strange gaps in logic and some characters magically seem to know everything that happened to other characters even though they weren’t there. But you don’t see a film like this for the plot. This is all about crazy stunts, cool badass killers, and hot chicks. Some of the stuff that happens is so outrageous as to be absurd — like the film’s tongue-in-cheek homage to Die Hard — hilarious! Unfortunately the film isn’t quite up to the Grindhouse standard: some of the acting is downright horrible (e.g. Steven Segal), and after all the build-up, the ending is a letdown (nothing too dramatic or outrageous happens). I think the filmmakers got distracted by the complex plot and immigration politics and got too serious at the end. The bottom line is that his is a film of moments: tons of hilarious and terrific set pieces and scenes, mixed in with a few awkward ones that don’t work, and the sum total isn’t great art. It’s fun, stylish, and I’m sure it’ll be a cult classic (like Grindhouse), but it falls a little short of my high expectations. That said, it’s worth seeing if you’re into this type of film. Like Piranha 3D, it’s a blast.
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