Review of Machete (2010) by Gimly M — 25 Nov 2013

Machete poses an interesting problem for me as an amateur reviewer.

Firstly, it's supposed to be a regen. Grindhouse Exploitation film, yet it's stocked with legendary actors like Danny Trejo, Michelle Rodriguez and special effects genius/actor Tom Savini all of whom I'm very fond, as well as more mainstream stars Robert De Niro (The Godfather Part II, Taxi Driver, The Deer Hunter, Goodfellas, Cape Fear, Awakenings, Jackie Brown, Analyze This, Analyze That, Hide and Seek, Limitless), Jessica Alba (Dark Angel, Sin City, Fantastic 4 and Rise of the Silver Surfer, The Eye, The Killer Inside Me), Lindsay Lohan (Mean Girls, I Know Who Killed Me, Chapter 27) Jeff Fahey (Psycho III, The Lawnmower Man, Darkman III: Die Darkman Die, Lost), Cheech Marin (Cars [and its upcoming sequel], From Dusk till Dawn, The Lion King), and Steven Seagal (Driven to Kill, Against the Dark, Kill Switch, Urban Justice, Shadow Man, Half Past Dead, The Patriot).

Secondly, the film tries desperately hard to be a "cult classic" film. Usually I feel that anyone who deliberately designs their film in hope of gaining a cult following doesn't deserve one, it's films like Donnie Darko and Revolver that earn this right by the merits of the writer and director, not cheap tricks. Yet Machete kinda succeeded in winning me over, despite my view on cult films.

Thirdly, the faux trailer that the film is based on, looks like it could have been a better film, and yet there's not really any difference between the two.

Fourthly, I enjoy metaphor and social/political commentary in my films, but it's American, so there's not really any room for subtleties, which annoys me.

And finally, I find myself in quite the rut. Originally I watched Machete at the Dendy cinema in Civic, and thought it was one of the best things to ever happen to me, naturally, I bought the film as soon as it was available, but it's taken me a while to get around to rewatching the DVD. I did so last night, where I found myself completely untaken by the magic I'd been gripped by first time around. It's the sort of film that is insanely better in theatres, but I honestly thought that the rewatch value would be a Hell of a lot higher than this.

Machete is a wholly entertaining film, but I found myself completely unmoved by comparison after watching it a second time, and unfortunately this is the asset I most highly prize in a film. A great one to introduce to people, and maybe to have going on at an intoxicant-fuelled party, but I was unpleasantly surprised by the exposition-heavy dialogue and rhythmless silliness that I'd missed the first time around.

The film ends with promises for sequels, which I look forward to, the characters are already set, so maybe director Rodriguez can hammer home the loveable moments of Machete than unfortunately get lost in a haze of mediocrity after the initial shock-value wears off.

62%.

-Gimly.