Director Robert Rodriguez, left, with actor Mel Gibson on the set of 'Machete Kills'. Photo / AP
Ever since writer/director Robert Rodriguez broke out with his DIY action thriller El Mariachi in 1992, the quality of his output has been wildly erratic. I like many of his movies, but others repel me with great force.
Rodriguez's maverick approach to filmmaking makes him easy to like as a director - he works outside the Hollywood system at his own studios in Austin, Texas, and is intimately involved in all aspects of production on his films.
But while his unique status as the ringleader of a mini movie empire may have lead to such iconic movies as Sin City, it has also resulted in turds like The Adventures Of Shark Boy and Lava Girl.
I loved Machete, but Machete Kills tried my patience. It just didn't carry me along like the original. Self-indulgence can be a wonderful thing in movies, but it doesn't always result in a fun viewing experience.
It feels positively sacrilegious to suggest this, but sometimes I think Rodriguez might benefit from working more within the studio system. I'm all for directors following their passion, but the film-lover in me is curious to see what kind of movie would result if there's somebody there to say "no" to Rodriguez.
Watching Machete Kills has me once again questioning whether or not I can fully believe in Rodriguez as a filmmaker.
To answer this question I posed to myself, I have decided to assess his (cinematically-released) work, movie-by-movie, and judge whether or not each film shows him to be a genius, or a madman.
Disclaimer: Many great directors could easily be described as madmen - John Ford, Alfred Hitchock, Hal Ashby, Paul Verhoeven, Werner Herzog. I use the term here to refer specifically to instances when Rodriguez overloaded a particular film with unpalatable crapulence.
El Mariachi (1992)
How can you not love this scrappy little wonder? Rodriguez's love for classic action tropes came through loud and clear in his debut film, but he also showed a desire to push the boundaries of the genre in new and gritty ways.
Verdict: Genius
Desperado (1995)
Rodriguez directed this studio-backed El Mariachi remake/sequel after taking time out to hone his major filmmaking nous with a 50s throwback car-racing movie made for cable TV. His increased abilities are evident in the agile action western that also introduced Antonio Banderas to English-speaking audiences. Desperado fulfilled the potential of El Mariachi, but promised even greater achievements to come.
Verdict: Genius
From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
His second collaboration with "best friend" Quentin Tarantino (after directing one segment of 1995's forgettable anthology film Four Rooms) is a shallow but lively genre mashup. Its legacy has been overshadowed by direct-to-video sequels and Tarantino's lack of acting skills, but From Dusk Till Dawn holds up as a nasty little thriller with awesome black comedy moments. As entertaining as it remains, it still seems more like a diversion than a film either the co-writer/co-star (QT) or the director (RR) really cared about.
Verdict: Genius
The Faculty (1998)
The closest thing to a straight studio film Rodriguez has ever directed, The Faculty was marketed as yet another Scream clone, but has much more in common with one of my favourite movies, the 1978 version of Invasion of the Body Snatchers, which you should totally see if you never have. The Faculty shows how Rodriguez's grungy flair can come through loud and clear in a more straightfoward genre story. I have a soft spot for this movie.
Verdict: Genius
Spy Kids (2001)
I got very excited when I heard Rodriguez was going to make a family-friendly adventure - he grew up on the same 80s movies that I did, and I was confident his effort would hold up to the likes of The Goonies or D.A.R.Y.L. Alas, it was a giant turd. RR's homemade CGI effects began showing up in this film, and they are distractingly terrible. Nose-picking has far too large a role to play. It's all fine and dandy to want to make films for your kids, but this was just an icky mess.
Verdict: Madman.
Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams (2002)
More terrible CGI. More clumsy storytelling over-reliant on cameos. It feels churlish to rag on a kiddie film, but these seemed like they were slapped together at the last minute. Still, this gets points for bringing Ricardo Montalban (Armando from Conquest of the Planet of The Apes) into the fold.
Verdict: Madman
Sin City (2005)
Just when I'd written him off, Rodriguez comes back hard with his greatest ever movie - an instantly iconic adaptation of Frank Miller's legendary noir comic book that introduced a whole new visual pallette to mainstream cinema.
The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl (2005)
... So he went off and made another kids movie. One that gifted the world Taylor Lautner.
Verdict: Madman
Planet Terror (2007)
Every film lover on the planet got feverishly excited when Grindhouse was announced, but the double-feature's lack of success at the US box office resulted in the two films being split up for international release. And Rodriguez's segement Planet Terror didn't even come out at the cinema in New Zealand! While not nearly as successful an exercise as Sin City, Planet Terror nevertheless demonstrated a re-committment to bad-assery on Rodriguez's part. It's an extremely odd film (the stuff with the kid and the gun really wierded me out, as did QT's melting scrotum) and I still can't decide if this or Death Proof is the better film. There was definitely a sense that neither movie lived up to their potential.
Verdict: Even split between Madman and Genius.
Shorts (2009)
Naturally, Rodriguez followed it up with yet another kids movie. Although there is once again far too much focus on boogers, I found this slightly more palatable than RR's other family-friendly movies. Still, I couldn't determine why it existed. How many kids movies does this guy need to make? Does anyone really grow up aspiring to be a family friendly filmmaker?
Verdict: Madman
Spy Kids 4: All The Time In The World (2011)
Okay I haven't seen this. I just couldn't do it. All respect to RR's kiddie empire, but a guy can only handle so many snot jokes.
Verdict: Madman.
Machete Kills (2013)
As previously mentioned, this film was a disappointment for me. The digital bullets and wounds thing is now completely out of control, and detracts significantly from the action. All the gun battles are mimed, and it shows. This film relies on its stunt-casting (Charlie Sheen aka Carlos Estevez; Mel Gibson) and fails to feature anything resembling a coherent through-line. The scuzziness of the Spy Kids movies now seems to be infecting RR's more adult-oriented output. Blerg.
Verdict: Madman
So by this wholly scientific assessment, Robert Rodriguez is more of a madman (Score: 8.5) than a genius (Score: 6.5).
But then again, I never saw Spy Kids 4, so I should probably give that the benefit of the doubt. And it feels strangely Scrooge-like to hate on all these kids movies. Plus the finally-actually-happening Sin City sequel will probably square everything up nicely.
And he seems like a pretty awesome dude you can't help but admire. So despite my findings here, I still consider him a genius. I should probably give Once Upon a Time In Mexico another shot.
* Agree/disagree? Big Rodriguez fan? Remember D.A.R.Y.L.? I loved that little guy. Comment Below!
The film explores themes of survival and humanity during societal collapse.