Director: Robert Rodriguez.
Starring: Danny Trejo, Mel Gibson, Michelle Rodriguez, Jessica Alba, Cuba Gooding Jr., Lady Gaga, Amber Heard, Sofia Vergara, Carlos Estevez, Antonio Banderas, William Sadler, Vanessa Hudgens.
Running Time: 108 minutes.
Certificate: 15.
Synopsis: Machete (Danny Trejo) is enlisted by the American President (Charlie Sheen as Carlos Estevez) to take down a madman revolutionary and an eccentric billionaire arms dealer.
MACHETE started life as a fake trailer in the Tarantino/Rodriguez movie mash-up, GRINDHOUSE. The popularity of the trailer led to the film getting funding and becoming a fully fledged feature starring a heap load of Hollywood legends. This tradition continues in MACHETE KILLS, seeing stars such as Charlie Sheen, Antonio Banderas and Cuba Gooding Jr. added to the bill. More importantly, the film that started as a fake trailer is now set to become a trilogy.
Fans of the original trailer should ensure that they turn up promptly to the theatre as they’ll be in for a treat. “Machete kills again… In space,” is the forthcoming release teased at the film’s outset. The tone of this trailer sets up audience expectation perfectly, and if the trailer leaves you cold then you probably shouldn’t bother with the next hour and a half. Containing the three Bs that the franchise’s star Danny Trejo insists are all you need to make a good film (blood, bullets and babes), if ever there were a film that epitomised these three components, it would be this one. Every scene is soaked in gore with the kills getting more outlandish as the film progresses, including a ludicrous set piece involving a helicopter and a grappling gun.
The plot plays a lot like 2006’s SMOKIN’ ACES, with Machete and his hostage having a bounty placed on their heads. Enter El Cameleón, a body swapping professional hitman, played by the eclectic ensemble of Cuba Gooding Jr., Antonio Banderas, Walt Goggins and Lady Gaga, the latter making her film debut. The babe quota is overflowing by the truckload with stars such as Amber Heard, Jessica Alba and Sofia Vergara oozing sex appeal whenever they are on-screen, Vergara brilliantly playing a brothel madam with a penchant for underwear inspired weaponry.
Robert Rodriguez has carved out an impressive career with highlights including DESPERADO and SIN CITY. A director who doesn’t exactly struggle getting actors to approach him, the film’s biggest coup comes in the form of Mel Gibson’s technology-obsessed villain, Luther Voz, giving potentially one of the craziest, over the top villainous performances you are ever likely to witness.
One of the greatest things about MACHETE KILLS is that it is beautifully bonkers; this is one film where you genuinely can’t predict what will happen from scene to scene. MACHETE KILLS isn’t going to garner any sought after awards, but it is definitely mindless fun, so disengage your brain at the door and enjoy.
MACHETE KILLS is released in the UK on Friday October 11th.
