Blu-ray Review - Machete Kills

Machete Kills
Director: Robert Rodriguez
Starring: Danny Trejo, Michelle Rodriguez, Sofia Vergara, Amber Heard, Antonio Banderas, Cuba Gooding Jr., Demian Bichir, Charlie Sheen (Carlos Estevez) and Mel Gibson
Studio: Universal Home Entertainment
Release Date: January 21, 2014
ASIN: B00GDDNMEY
Running Time: 1hr 48mins.
Rating: R

Review:

Coming to DVD and Blu-ray on January 21st is the exciting action-pack sequel to 2010's Machete, titled Machete Kills, once again starring Danny Trejo as Machete and co-staring Michelle Rodriguez as Luz, the leader of She. New faces to the world of Machete includes Amber Heard, Sofia Vergara (Modern Family), Antonia Banderas, Cuba Gooding Jr., Demian Bichir Carlos Estevez (Charlie Sheen's birth name) and Mel Gibson. Bonus features include: Deleted and Extended Scenes and Making Machete Kills.

What originally started as a fake trailer to the Grindhouse movies lead to the feature film of Machete in 2010, which also had its own fake trailers of Machete Kills and Machete Kills Again. Thanks to the box-office success of Machete, Machete Kills arrived in theaters this past fall, though it didn't do as well in theaters with moviegoers and critics, the film still has a chance to gain an audience with the upcoming DVD and Blu-ray release. The film is already available on Digital HD.

Being an action-junkie, I enjoyed watching the first film,which was a throwback to 70s' exploitation movies, only with more over-the-top violence. That being said, I was looking forward to reviewing the sequel Machete Kills, only to be slightly disappointed with the opening, (SPOILER WARNING) where Jessica Alba's character from the first movie meets her end.

Danny Trejo is nearly 70-years-old, but he is at the top of his game as Machete Cortez (a different Machete Cortez, not the one from the Spy Kids movies). This time the President of the United States (played by Charlie Sheen - How realistic is that?) has offered Machete a United States citizenship in exchange for his help in killing a terrorist, Marcos Mendez, who happens to have his heart wired to a nuclear missile detonator.

With the help of an undercover beauty pageant detonator, Blanca Vasquez, Machete makes his way to Mexico, where tracks down Marcos, but after learning of the detonator, he decides to bring in back to United States instead of killing him.

Machete must outrun a crazy brothel owner, Madame Desdemona, and her prostitute assassins. Plus, a hitman named El Camaleón, who can change his/her's identity in a matter of seconds, is hot on his trail. Lastly, Machete must deal with an insane inventor, Luther Voz (played by Mel Gibson).


Just like the first movie, Machete Kills is an action-packed thrill ride, but with a science-fiction twist with the Luther Voz, who is played by Mel Gibson and his take on the villain is genius. The basic plot is extremely thin and mostly silly at times, but you'll never notice it, as you'll be engulfed in all the over-the-top action scenes. Thought Machete Kills isn't as good as the first movie, the film is still entertaining and should satisfy most action fans. I only wish there were more bonus features.

*Disclaimer - I received a complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.