Director: Ernesto Diaz Espinoza,
Cast: Fernanda Urrejola, Matias Oviedo, Eric Kleinsteuber, Jorge Alis, Victor Gonzalez,
Running time: 75 minutes
Certificate: 18
Synopsis: After being caught eavesdropping ona gangster giving orders on a hit, DJ and gamer, Santiago (Oviedo) offers to do the hit in exchange for his life. His target? The dreaded Machine Gun Woman.
Grindhouse and exploitation cinema has found its way into the mainstream of late, thanks to the likes of Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, and Eli Roth. Despite their commendable efforts, nothing beats a genuinely low budgeted film with a lot of personality. BRING ME THE HEAD OF THE MACHINE GUN WOMAN falls easily into the category of exploitation cinema with its parade of scantily clad women, well armed assassins, and gruesome yet humorous violence. That will be enough to keep genre fans happy, but Espinoza’s latest is also surprisingly clever as well as being pertinent to 21st century life.
The plot follows Santiago (Oviedo), a young DJ who works at a club presided over by a ruthless gangster and spends his spare time playing violent video games. Santiago’s introduction is quite the humorous entrance, as we first assume his bragging to be actual boasting about having killed men. We soon learn he is merely discussing his latest play through of a popular console game. In an almost Hitchcockian twist, Santiago becomes ‘the wrong man’ after overhearing talks of a hit. In exchange for his life, Santiago suggests he carry out the hit for free. It is this little twist that gives the film an incredible biting wit throughout.
We’ve all seen right wing newspapers tell us how playing video games will turn us into mindless killers. Such coverage has actually convinced Santiago that he could easily become such a ruthless murderer, only to find out that no amount of experience in the virtual world will aid you in being able to administer and cope with violence. It isn’t until he begins to partake in the real life violence that he becomes somewhat competent in terms of gun slinging and kicking ass.
Espinoza allows this commentary to play out beneath the surface, rather than hammering it home, and he never forgets that this is dirty, trashy cinema. The 75 minutes are filled up well, with a number of sequences split up into computer game style levels, with mission objective titles to boot. It’s an enjoyable pace that knows when to let the audience relax, and when to assault their senses. If you want it fast, action packed, and most of all enjoyable, then BRING ME THE HEAD OF THE MACHINE GUN WOMAN is certainly for you. This is the kind of intelligent filth that is making the mainstream look clueless.
BRING ME THE HEAD OF THE MACHINE GUN WOMAN is released in UK cinemas on 27th September, with a DVD and Blu-ray release following on Monday 14th October.
