Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Graphic
- irreverent
- cartoonish
- visceral
- cult movie night
- grindhouse double feature
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film messy, violent, shallow, and tasteless, while recognizing its cartoonishly enjoyable exploitation energy.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Machete survives an assassination setup and turns against the employers who tried to kill him.
The film combines brutal deaths, corrupt politicians, border politics, and deliberately heightened action.
Machete’s machete-based fighting and near-superhuman survival drive the film’s stylized set pieces.
Illegal immigration, border patrol, and immigration law are incorporated into an intentionally tasteless exploitation thriller.
Films like Machete, and why
Planet Terror
shares cartoonish ultraviolence, revenge-driven vigilante action, exploitation aesthetics, and irreverent humor
Kill Bill: Vol. 1
shares grindhouse presentation, stylized brutality, female action characters, and pulpy revenge storytelling
Desperado
shares Mexican-American borderland crime, heightened violence, and a charismatic outsider battling corrupt forces
Django Unchained
shares blaxploitation-influenced revenge, exaggerated action, and politically charged exploitation filmmaking
Movie Details
- Directors
- Robert Rodriguez, Ethan Maniquis
- Release Date
- 2010-09-01
- Runtime
- 105 min
- Rating
- 6.3 / 10 (3662)
Cast
- Danny Trejo
- Michelle Rodriguez
- Jessica Alba
- Robert De Niro
- Steven Seagal
- Cheech Marin
- Lindsay Lohan
- Electra Avellan
- Elise Avellan
- Tom Savini
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Peacock Premium, Peacock Premium Plus
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Machete about?
- A betrayed Federale wages a brutally comic machete-fueled war on corrupt employers, politicians, and borderland criminals.
- What is Machete like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Machete as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Machete violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Machete as graphic.
- What did critics think of Machete?
- Critics broadly found the film messy, violent, shallow, and tasteless, while recognizing its cartoonishly enjoyable exploitation energy.
- Which films are like Machete?
- Films with a similar feel include Planet Terror, Kill Bill: Vol. 1, Desperado, and Django Unchained.
- How long is Machete?
- Machete runs 105 minutes.
- Where can I watch Machete?
- In United States, Machete streams on Peacock Premium, Peacock Premium Plus.
