Machete

For the past 25 years, journeyman actor Danny Trejo (Predators) has been paying his dues playing convicts, criminals, bikers and miscellaneous bad-asses. Now in Machete he finally gets top billing. What started as a fake movie trailer in the film Grindhouse has blossomed into a full fledged feature playing homage to Mexican Exploitation films and spoofing hot-button topics like immigration and border laws.

Trejo plays a Mexican Federale who is betrayed by corrupt cops and the reigning drug lord Steven Seagal (Under Siege). Unbeknownst to them, he survives their assignation attempt and has resurfaced in the United States as an undocumented day laborer. Not one to blend in with the crowd he is spotted by Jessica Alba (Fantastic Four) an immigration cop and by Michelle Rodriguez (Avatar) who runs an underground assistance league for illegal aliens.

When Trejo is picked up for work by a man in a business suit, Jeff Fahey (Grindhouse) he is coerced and threatened into shooting a Texas state senator. Machete plans on missing his shot but once again he is betrayed. The senator is clipped intentionally by a second shooter to boost his campaign ratings and prove that Mexicans are a threat to American life. Machete is set up as the fall guy and with his face all over the media, his enemies in Mexico now know that he is alive. Machete is out gunned and out numbered but to quote his biggest opponent, he is hard to kill. Machete must defend himself and heads will roll, literally!

Machete is bloody and full of naked women but the graphic aspects are done respectfully as a homage to a very specific genre. Believe it or not, I did not find these scenes gratuitous. They belonged in the film like sailors and swearing and cops and hookers. They were needed for authenticity. It wouldn’t be a Grindhouse film without them.

What I loved about this film was the tiny visual details. For example if the camera lingered too long on a sharp object, you knew that pretty soon it would become a weapon. Also there are many little touches of humor. For instance when the Mexicans are called to arms they grab whatever is near by. Scanning the mob you will find weed whackers, pruning shears, a plunger and even a guy pushing an ice cream cart. Machete plays on all the stereo types and no one is immune. These little sight gags are like a rim shot at the end of a joke. They are funny, but they bring the point home.

There are many worthwhile cameos in this film. Lindsay Lohan plays a troubled drugged-out daddy’s girl (big stretch) and Cheech Marin plays a not so holy priest. Don Johnson portrays an over-zealous border vigilante and Robert De Niro really works it as a bigoted politician. With Machete, the parody cuts both ways. No one is safe from a little satire.

I really enjoyed this film and I liked what Robert Rodriguez was trying to do. I probably wouldn’t be comfortable in a true Grindhouse film, but as a vehicle for making a statement, it was much appreciated. Most of all I liked this film because it gave Danny Trejo a chance to shine. As a young man in prison he turned his life around and now dedicates his time in helping others. It’s nice to see him in the spotlight for a change. It couldn’t happen to a nicer guy. But don’t let that get around. Danny has to keep his bad-ass imagine.

Rating: Must See Danny Trejo is Machete