Review of Machete (1958) by David G — 12 Sep 2012

Follow up to 2007's QT/Robert Rodriguez throwback double-feature Grindhouse, based off one of the fake trailers found between the two films. Good for some tongue-in-cheek, gory time wasting but the cracks in the whole grindhouse revival thing are really starting to show. It was easy to overlook before in Planet Terror and Death Proof because they were fresh and cool but now it's hard to overlook the fact that 70's grindhouse and the present day simply don't mix. It's not for want of trying but it's just too clean and modern with too much CGI. I think for these things to work they have to go all out a'la Black Dynamite with legit old school cameras and a proper 70's setting. When characters start whipping out smartphones and laptops with fake film scratches added later via CGI, it just feels uncomfortably phoney.

Still, if you want some no frills fun to help pass the time then look no further. The dopey plot and over the top gory action will see you through. The cast play their comic book characters with gusto but there are far too many of them which results in some either being completely forgotten about (Tom Savini's hitman) or given a comeuppance that you may literally blink and miss. I had to actually rewind the film after it was over to find out what happened to Don Johnson's racist vigilante because I must have looked away for two seconds and missed it.