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Joe Dante, Sid Haig, Roger Corman, John Landis, Eddie Romero

In the 1960s and 70s, drive-in movie theaters and big city grindhouses were eager to book the wildest and most action-packed fare they could find, and low-budget producers were always on the lookout f... read more read more...or something unique to offer their viewers. Many of them found it in the Philippines, a country full of exotic locations, cooperative officials and folks willing to work cheap. Local producer Eddie Romero began exporting his cut-rate horror and crime pictures to American distributors in the 60s, and before long U.S. filmmakers were traveling there to shoot crazed jungle epics, women in prison thrillers, bloody horror stories and violent wartime dramas. It certainly helped that Philippine extras and technicians would work hard for low pay, and that local stuntmen didn't seem to worry much about risking their necks for a good shot; as one producer put it, "Human life was cheap, film was cheap -- it was a great place to shoot a movie!" Filmmaker Mark Hartley, who shared the crazed true story of the Australian exploitation movie scene in his documentary Not Quite Hollywood, shares the inside scoop on the wild and wooly world of filmmaking in the Philippines in the 1960s and 70s in Machete Maidens Unleashed! Featuring interviews with Gloria Hendry, Colleen Camp, Sid Haig, R. Lee Ermey, Roger Corman, Joe Dante, Allan Arkush and many more eyewitnesses to the madness of movie making in the Philippine jungles, Machete Maidens Unleashed! was an official selection at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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64% want to see it

353 ratings

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7 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 25 min.

Directed by: Mark Hartley

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DVD Release Date: July 25, 2011

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Flixster Reviews (60)

  • lewiskendell
    April 2, 2012
    lewiskendell
    Machete Maidens Unleashed is a good documentary for anyone fond of the exploitation movies of the 60's, 70's, and early 80's, as well as Roger Corman's movies in particular. Unlike the best documentaries, though, it won't hold much value for people who don't already have prior in... read moreterest in the topic.
  • blkbomb
    March 31, 2012
    blkbomb
    Jonathan Kaplan: We want frontal nudity from the waist up. Total nudity from behind. No pubic hair, go to work.

    "The Ultimate B-Movie Feast From The Far, Far East!"

    Machete Maidens Unleashed!, besides being an awesome title, is an entertaining look at the horrible and cheap mov... read moreies that were made in the Philippines. I'd much rather watch a documentary that talks about the behind the scenes stuff than actually watch any of the movies that were talked about. Other than Apocalypse Now, I haven't seen one of the movies that was made in the Philippines, nor do I wish to. This documentary does a good job summarizing what every cheap movie that was made over there was trying to accomplish. Their going to show a lot of breasts, a lot of blood, a lot of terrible looking monsters, rape, torture, and any other tasteless form of bodily harm or sexual acts they can.

    Where this movie gets it's entertainment value from is with the interviewees. Joe Dante and John Landis in particular. These are two guys that I could listen to all day. Plus their real filmmakers that have good movies to their credit, that just know so much about these types of movies. Mostly because those B-Movies are what gave them their start. Then there's the man himself, Roger Corman. He has quite a bit of screen time as well, where he describes different projects that went on. Corman talking about the movies is much more interesting then the movies themselves. There's plenty of other interesting interviews also, such as Pam Grier and Sid Haig, plus a lot of no name actors, actresses, and directors that took part in the movies.

    This is a short fast paced look at filmmaking in the Philippines. It's definitely worth a look even if you're not a fan of the particular movies that this is describing. It sure isn't going to make you one, but it is going to give you an entertaining and humorous look at them nonetheless.
  • FilmFanatik
    March 27, 2012
    FilmFanatik
    I remember first reading about this documentary way back when and, consquently, I was dying to catch a glimpse of it. Recently I got that chance, and Machete Maidens Unleashed! is just as much fun as I imagined it to be. Talking to a variety of Corman regulars, including Roger Co... read morerman himself, Joe Dante, Pam Grier, Sid Haig and also great interviews with people like John Landis, the documentary is mostly focused on Corman productions produced in the Phillipenes. The documentary is fast and furious, and doesn't stand still for a minute. It has a lot of energy, but it felt too short to me. That's a minor complaint, but it definitely seemed to go by too quickly and left me wanting more. Perhaps that's a good thing, or maybe it's not. It depends on your viewpoint, but if you're interested in movies like The Big Doll House, Women in Cages or The Big Bird Cage, then you're bound to love this documentary. It's gritty, honest and entertaining.
  • Beefy
    January 12, 2012
    Beefy
    More fun from the Not Quite Hollywood folks, this one more directly a look at Corman's work in the Philippines. Sure, a bit more of the same, but still enjoyable.
  • 366weirdmovies
    November 13, 2011
    366weirdmovies
    Documentary/clip show focusing on the steamy exploitation movies made in the Philippines in the 1970s (especially focusing on Roger Corman's women-in-prison series and the "Blood Island" horrors of schlock maestro Eddie Romero). Since it contains nothing but the best parts (i.e.... read more, topless women tied to a slab and threatened by a cobra, kickboxing midgets), for the most part its preferable to watching the originals.
  • FrizzDrop
    November 5, 2011
    FrizzDrop
    This documentary is gritty, exploitative, and deliciously gross in only the way that exploitation of the seventies and eighties can be. Channeling the vibe of exploitation films exclusively made in the Philippines in that time period, this documentary centers mostly on a certain ... read moremesh of topics, and especially focuses on the godfather of low budget grindhouse films, Roger Corman. His production company, New Horizons Pictures, made many disgustingly addictive films using the three B's: breasts, blood, and beasts. These films ranged from a variance of genres which include horror, women in prison films, kung fu, blaxploitation, fantasy, and marketing as lower budgeted versions of larger scaled productions. The film also speaks of the atrocious conditions that the actresses had to go through in the Filipino climate, including the extreme heat, cockroaches, and lack of privacy among the crew. Many of the interviewed actresses were accommodating, even found their work more hilarious than humiliating, and spoke of it with a strange mix of pride and self-awareness. Many others purported that the baring of their breasts was a statement for feminism and that the many scenes that included attempted rape, torture, and extenuating circumstances for profit was a way for them to fight back by showing parts of them that had previously been censored. The film even goes over the filming of Apocalypse Now, though that was fairly big budgeted, and starred large names of the day, including Martin Sheen and Marlon Brando. Though this film did bring attention to the directors of the day, and placed praise on these innovators, most of it was just slices of film, trying to cram as much in as possible. A lot of the content was educational and really brought the process of low budget moviemaking's dangers to attention, but it was not the deep film that could have come about.
  • kenstachnik
    October 27, 2011
    kenstachnik
    Soooo many more movies to watch!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    October 7, 2011
    LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    "The Ultimate B-Movie Feast From The Far, Far East!"

    A fast moving odyssey into the subterranean world of the rarely explored province of Filipino genre filmmaking.

    REVIEW

    Machete Maidens Unle... read moreashed! is Mark Hartley's follow up his fabulous documentary Not Quite Hollywood, which explored the resurgence of the Australian film industry in the 1970's and its history of exploitation and genre films. His new documentary looks at the prolific film industry of the Philippines and its shameless B-grade exploitation films of the '60's and '70's.

    The industry churned out a succession of cheap, low budget horror flicks that were aimed squarely at the American drive-in audiences. The film makers had liberty to make whatever they wanted, so long as they contained the three essential Bs - breasts, beasts, and blood. And canny American producers like Roger Corman were quick to capitalize on the cheap labour source to make a series of women in prison movies as well as low budget action movies. The Indonesian army was even willing to supply equipment and personnel, especially useful in staging large-scale action scenes! And no look at film making in the Philippines would be complete without a few anecdotes about the horrendous experience of Francis Ford Coppola while making his epic folly Apocalypse Now.

    Hartley's film includes lots of clips from these B-grade shockers; as well fascinating and revealing interviews with directors like John Landis, Joe Dante, and even Corman himself, and some of the stars of those films. While fast-paced and entertaining enough, the material here is not as strong as Not Quite Hollywood, nor are the films referred to as familiar to audiences. Nonetheless, Machete Maidens Unleashed has more than enough of the three Bs to entertain and amuse.
  • DrStrangeblog
    April 14, 2012
    DrStrangeblog
    Really fun & informative documentary detailing a branch of the profitable 1970s exploitation market and the pros and cons of filming in the Philippines. These are the locations that spawned the popular women in prison (WIP) genre including Big Doll House, Women in Cage... read mores and Big Bird Cage and talks with the actors, directors, and crew about their experiences. John Landis offers the most hilariously glib observations and we also hear from Sid Haig, Joe Dante, and the low-budget producer extraordinaire himself Roger Corman. The films were profitable in part because they were so cheap, cutting corners by having dangerous stunts performed by untrained actors, primitive living and working conditions, and borrowing the Filipino army for big action scenes!

    Favorite title: Jeanie Bell starred as the black ass-kicking heroine in TNT Jackson, so following its success what do you call a film starring a white ass-kicking heroine? Firecracker!
  • KLFilmmaker
    November 6, 2011
    KLFilmmaker
    Nice look at exploitation films made cheaply in the Philippines.

View All Machete Maidens Unleashed! Reviews

Critic Reviews

Fred Topel
April 13, 2011
Fred Topel, Screen Junkies

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

Scott Weinberg
January 9, 2011
Scott Weinberg, FEARnet

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

Todd Gilchrist
September 28, 2010
Todd Gilchrist, Crave Online

as engaging as it frequently is, Hartley's latest offers only a tourist's-eye view of its subject matter, crafting a unique, interesting documentary that fails to feel truly immersive. Full Review

Chris Bumbray
September 23, 2010
Chris Bumbray, JoBlo's Movie Emporium

More fun from the director of NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD. A total blast. Full Review

Linda Barnard
February 21, 2012
Linda Barnard, Toronto Star

Click to read the article Full Review

Liam Lacey
July 8, 2011
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

Click to read the article Full Review

Jennie Punter
March 11, 2011
Jennie Punter, Globe and Mail

Click to read the article Full Review

Joe Leydon
September 21, 2010
Joe Leydon, Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

Norman Wilner
March 4, 2011
Norman Wilner, NOW Toronto

Click to read the article Full Review

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