Film Review: Machete Kills (2013)
June 2, 2017 by Talking Pulp	in Film Review, Reviews and tagged 2010s, 2013, action, Alexa Vega, Amber Heard, Antonio Banderas, Charlie Sheen, crime, Cuba Gooding Jr., Danny Trejo, Demian Bichir, film, Jessica Alba, Lady Gaga, Mel Gibson, Michelle Rodriguez, review, Robert Rodriguez, sci-fi, Sofia Vergara, thriller, Tom Savini, Vanessa Hudgens, Walton Goggins, William Sadler
Release Date: September 19th, 2013 (Austin Fantastic Fest)
Directed by: Robert Rodriguez
Written by: Robert Rodriguez, Marcel Rodriguez, Kyle Ward
Music by: Carl Thiel
Cast: Danny Trejo, Michelle Rodriguez, Sofía Vergara, Amber Heard, Lady Gaga, Antonio Banderas, Cuba Gooding Jr., Walton Goggins, William Sadler, Demián Bichir, Mel Gibson, Charlie Sheen, Jessica Alba, Vanessa Hudgens, Alexa Vega, Tom Savini, Elon Musk, Electra Avellan, Elise Avellan
Quick Draw Productions, Troublemaker Studios, Open Road Films, 108 Minutes
*written in 2013.
"Machete don't tweet." – Machete
I was a big fan of Machete when it came out. It kept alive the modern revival of grindhouse cinema, which was reintroduced to the world a few years back by the films Death Proof by Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez's own Planet Terror. Both films were released together as a double bill feature called Grindhouse. Between the two films, there were a series of faux trailers for other grindhouse pictures. One of those was for a film named Machete. The fake trailer was so popular that Rodriguez decided to make the film. Once that was successful, he decided to make this film. There is also a third planned.
Machete Kills doesn't hold a candle to the first Machete film. Don't get me wrong, it was enjoyable and had some awesome moments but it was lacking in energy and in scope. It felt smaller and more linear, whereas the original film was a wild ride taking many different unexpected turns. This film went from point A to point B and then introduced us to a point C. Had it not been for the awesome performance by Mel Gibson as the main antagonist of this film, it would've fallen much flatter than it did.
The cinematic style of this movie, mirrored the first and for the most part, stayed somewhat true to the grindhouse vibe. The problem I have with these modern grindhouse films though, is the use of CGI effects. I get that it is more affordable and that these films have a tight budget but the whole essence of grindhouse films is over-the-top violence and action and often times gore. In the old grindhouse days, they had to find ways to pull this off with very limited resources. Part of what made those movies so effective and respectable, was the ingenuity of the filmmakers. This film, like its predecessor really lacks in this area. It takes the easy road and frankly, I expected more from Robert Rodriguez.
I do love that Danny Trejo finally has a starring vehicle though and I do look forward to the next sequel. I could watch new installments of Machete for years to come. He's a great character and at the end of the day, despite the few issues mentioned above, these films exceed the standard blockbuster action fare that Hollywood keeps pumping out at $300+ million dollar price tags.
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2 thoughts on "Film Review: Machete Kills (2013)"
The way this film bombed at the box office, I doubt there will be a third film and if there is , look for a Netflix debut. Just went to far overboard with the whole whacked out plot. But yes, Mel was great!
Cinespiria says:
Recently, Rodriguez confirmed it was still happening but its been awhile since the second one and he's got a full slate.