Machete Maidens Unleashed!

2010

1h 25m

Documentary

History

Drama

List

88%

Tomatometer

8 Reviews

73%

Audience Score

500+ Ratings

In the final decades of the 20th century, the Philippines was a country where low-budget exploitation-film producers were free to make nearly any kind of movie they wanted, any way they pleased. It was a country with extremely lax labor regulations and a very permissive attitude towards cultural expression. As a result, it became a hotbed for the production of cheapie movies. Their history and the genre itself are detailed in this breezy, nostalgic documentary.

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Liam Lacey

Globe and Mail

Rated: 1/4

Jul 8, 2011

Full Review

Jennie Punter

Globe and Mail

Rated: 3/4

Mar 11, 2011

Full Review

Glenn Dunks

Trespass

This unofficial sequel to Not Quite Hollywood isn't as enjoyable as that title, its selection of films is less varied and less passionately produced, but it is still a wild and hysterical time at the movies.

Sep 15, 2013

Full Review

Fred Topel

Screen Junkies

It's ultimately the same story as any Roger Corman bio, but it's a fun highlight reel.

Apr 13, 2011

Full Review

Norman Wilner

NOW Toronto

Rated: 4/5

Mar 4, 2011

Full Review

Scott Weinberg

FEARnet

Mr. Hartley has proven himself to be quite the excellent curator of globally tacky cinema.

Rated: 4/5

Jan 9, 2011

Full Review

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Audience Member

Uno de los mejores documentales sobre cine (y cine de culto en general) que he visto nunca. No solo trata un tema algo más desconocido (bastante underground de hecho), sino que además lo hace de una forma muy dinámica y entretenida. Da igual que no te interese la filipinoexploitation, si te gustan los documentales y el cine, este tienes que verlo si o si.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/29/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Machete Maidens Unleashed! shows you some pretty messed up stuff, but fails to be emotionally affecting. A lot of different facets are being explored, but none of them really get time, or are being presented in an humorous way, so that it is hard for them to have any deeper impact. It is an interesting subject matter though and I had a lot of fun with it... I just don't know, if I should have. See for yourself.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/10/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A great and fast paced documentary about exploitation films in the Philippines from Mark Hartley, the man behind Not Quite Hollywood and Electric Boogaloo. 90% of films covered is Roger Corman stuff and the doc can double as New World Pictures tribute. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/16/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Very well done but it's essentially just a mini Roger Corman doc and most of the movies are beyond obscure now. But then, WENG WENG!

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/12/23

Full Review

Audience Member

From the same writer/director of "Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation!" comes a new documentary about the many exploitation films made on the cheap in Marcos' Philippines in the 70s and 80s. While it's a fairly thorough documentary on the subject, what it lacks compared to "Not Quite Hollywood" is that many of the Australian exploitation filmmakers in that documentary went on to much greater things, which gave this exploration and celebration of Ozploitation more credible and significant. The biker, women-in-prison, midget super spy films made in the Philippines were quirky and unique, but they were simply exploitation, made my filmmakers who for the most part, never rose above exploitation. "Not Quite Hollywood" played out like an origin tale for Peter Wier, George Miller and other, which this film was lacking. I did enjoy when the documentary began to explore the Filipino filmmakers, which was new to me, but the American produced films were not a lot more than a fun celebration of his exploitation sub genre. And related to this, when the cover the production of "Apocalypse Now" it seems kind of out of place when the rest of the film is covering films like "The Losers" or "The Big Doll House" Still, there are many fun interviews with the likes of Roger Corman, Steve Carver, Joe Dante, John Landis, Jon Davidson, Jack Hill, Brian Trenchard-Smith, Joe Viola, Sid Haig, Christopher Mitchum, Dick Miller, Pam Grier and R. Lee Ermey, and the film has a breezy pace that serves it well. If you've seen and enjoyed the films covered here, you'll probably enjoy this doc. I think I'm looking forward to director Mark Hartley's next film, which is focusing on exploitation films by Cannon.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Soft bodies for hard cash

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/24/23

Full Review

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Mark Hartley

Director

Roger Corman

Actor

John Landis

Actor

Pete Tombs

Actor

Mark Holcomb

Actor

Joe Dante

Actor

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Synopsis

In the final decades of the 20th century, the Philippines was a country where low-budget exploitation-film producers were free to make nearly any kind of movie they wanted, any way they pleased. It was a country with extremely lax labor regulations and a very permissive attitude towards cultural expression. As a result, it became a hotbed for the production of cheapie movies. Their history and the genre itself are detailed in this breezy, nostalgic documentary.

Director: Mark Hartley
Screenwriter: Mark Hartley, Andrew Leavold
Genre: Documentary, History, Drama
Original Language: English (Australia)
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 18, 2016
Runtime: 1h 25m

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