Movie Review: Machete

Note: Juan Letona helps us stay current by offering up his review of Machete. Be sure to check out more of his writing on Bitmob and follow him on Twitter.

Robert Rodriguez's latest movie, Machete -- based on a trailer created for Grindhouse, Rodriguez and Tarantino's tribute to b-movie schlock -- is a bloody, revenge-filled adventure. The story takes place in the capital of Texas, where the character for which the movie is named, a day laborer, is thrown into a mixture of politics, corruption, and law. Machete quickly realizes that law and order in the United States of America is just as corrupt as the United States of Mexico.

Aided by a conflicted Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent, Jessica Alba, an aspiring revolutionary in Michelle Rodriguez, and a Father/Priest/Brother in Cheech Marin -- Danny Trejo (Machete) plays a fairly one-note role as a dealer of death and vengeance. There is a unique underlying context that Rodriguez bashes into your head throughout the movie whenever a subtle approach would be ineffective. It is as if the director/creator wants to convey a great message but limits himself to his own art, and Machete doesn't differ too much from Rodriguez's previous works like, El Mariachi, Desperado, Once Upon a Time in Mexico and Planet Terror. They all share similar film qualities.

There is a strong basis for an argument that if Robert Rodriguez were to take the subject matter in a different direction, Machete could be his Departed -- a movie of betrayals, violence and honor. The topics are on the forefront with Arizona's controversial immigration law, the never-ending drug-war violence in Mexican border cities and the cultural conflicts at home (the role of the Church, Mexican-Americans, etcetera). But these topics were handled in a campy manner and the film moves away from them halfway through the plot, only to prance it's characters around saying, "Look at the cool, conflicted character I just made." But don't confuse Machete as a misanthrope, he ultimately seeks to do right and believes evil must not reign. The viewer is left satisfied, only wondering when a director will handle these topics seriously.

Score: 4 out of 5
Confused about our scoring system? Read this explanation.