WHO’S IN IT?
Danny Trejo (Con Air), Carlos Estévez (Hot Shots!), Mel Gibson (Lethal Weapon), Demián Bichir (The Heat), Michelle Rodriguez (The Fast and the Furious), Sofia Vergara (Modern Family), Amber Heard (The Rum Diary), Lady Gaga (film debut), Antonio Banderas (Desperado), Cuba Gooding Jr. (Jerry Maguire), Walton Goggins (Django Unchained), Jessica Alba (Into The Blue), Zoe Saldana (Star Trek), Vanessa Hudgens (Spring Breakers), Alexa Vega (Spy Kids), Tom Savini (From Dusk Till Dawn)
WHO’S BEHIND THE CAMERA?
Robert Rodriguez (Sin City), director, co-producer, co-composer, cinematographer, co-editor; Kyle Ward (film debut), writer; Sergei Bespalov (Father of Invention), Aaron Kaufman (The Greatest), Iliana Nikolic (Labor Pains), Alexander Rodnyansky (Cloud Atlas) and Rick Schwartz (The Departed), producers; Carl Thiel (Planet Terror), composer; Rebecca Rodriguez (Machete), editor
WHAT’S IT ABOUT?
Mexican Police Detective-turned-spy Machete Cortez (Trejo) is recruited by the President of the United States (Estévez) to stop an insane revolutionary known as Mendez (Bichir) from launching a missile toward Washington D.C. However, it soon becomes apparent that Mendez is not the real threat in this situation, coming instead from an international criminal organization led by eccentric billionaire and arms-dealing terrorist Luther Voz (Gibson)…
WHY SHOULD YOU BE EXCITED?
Starting life as a minor Spy Kids character, then progressing further into popularity by appearing in a fake trailer for his own action-packed spin-off during double-bill project Grindhouse, and then taking the lead in an ACTUAL movie based on that same trailer, Machete Cortez, as played by character actor Danny Trejo, is something of an underground cult hero amongst B-movie lovers. And his name is about to get a wider recognition after his bigger-and-possibly-better sequel arrives on the screen.
Director Robert Rodriguez, no stranger to exploitation cinema after movies like Planet Terror and From Dusk Till Dawn, takes everything that made his first Machete movie outing so wonderfully bonkers and well and truly cranks it up to 11 for maximum impact. Put it this way, anyone expecting fine art should move right along. Those looking for absolutely bonkers but absolutely fantastic action, however, read on.
One of the first things to note about Machete Kills is the sheer size of its cast which, for a B-movie exploitation movie like this, is pretty damn impressive. Aside from Trejo and other returning cast members Michelle Rodriguez, Jessica Alba and Tom Savini, we have no shortage of sheer star power here from femme fatales Sofia Vergara, Amber Heard, Zoe Saldana, Vanessa Hudgens, former Spy Kid Alexa Vega and even Lady Gaga of all people, to other major players like Mel Gibson, Demián Bichir, Antonio Banderas, Cuba Gooding Jr. and Walton Goggins. But looking at that cast list, there’s one name that you might not recognise: one Carlos Estévez, who makes his “debut” in this movie. We don’t want to give away who this guy is (unless you watched the trailer above, in which case you already know), but let’s just say he’s someone who will be “winning” a lot of praise in his bonkers role as the President.
Expect more than quite a bit of violence during this movie, and seeing how its predecessor got away with some of the most creatively daft death scenes ever put to good use in a B-movie that shouldn’t be a surprise. Part of the fun is going in to see how far it can push itself whilst still having an enormous amount of fun. After all, the trailers feature weapons that look like they were ripped off from Austin Powers – of course it’s not going to take itself seriously. And neither should you, when you go to see Machete Kills in all its lunacy and explosive, action-packed fun.
