The Machete Movies Were Great, But Not Enough People Talk About Hobo With A Shotgun

I love “bad” movies! So, even though a lot of people will hate on a flick like Batman & Robin, I love it! Or, what about Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, which is jaw-droppingly bad? Guess what. I’m a fan! However, what impresses me even more is when movies are made to be intentionally bad, or at least go full throttle into exploitation territory. Case in point: 2007’s Grindhouse, which was brought to us from the creative minds of Robert Rodriguez (who deserves his flowers), and Quentin Tarantino (who gets quite enough already).

Well, one of the best parts about the deliciously ridiculous Grindhouse doubler feature were the fake trailers, which led to real, full-length movies, those being Machete, Thanksgiving, and Hobo With a Shotgun. I loved the Machete movies, and Thanksgiving, but I think Hobo With a Shotgun deserves more love. Here’s why.

Personally, I Feel It's The Best Of The Adaptations From The Fictitious Grindhouse Trailers

As I just mentioned, 2007’s Grindhouse was all about replicating exploitation flicks, which rose to prominence in the ‘70s and early ‘80s. Sure, other, more modern films, like Overlord (which I love) have utilized elements of exploitation flicks, but few movies have come as close to embodying the subgenre like Grindhouse did. With it came faux trailers, which stayed in line with the rest of the ridiculousness that was Planet Terror and Death Proof.

Well, Machete was absolutely ludicrous, and often went overboard in the ridiculous department (At the end of Machete Kills, they even teased a sequel…in space!). In this way, those movies kind of felt like parodies of exploitation films, which worked for the first movie, but I felt it kind of lost its way with the sequel. On the other side of the spectrum is Thanksgiving, which, while excellent (we gave it high marks in our review), felt more like a modern horror movie - think, Scream, but holiday themed - rather than what we got with the initial fake trailer for Grindhouse.

That said, Hobo absolutely nails the exploitation vibe, and it definitely understood the assignment. Directed by Dark Side of the Ring co-creator, Jason Eisener, and starring Rutger Hauer as the titular hobo, the plot almost doesn’t even matter, and that’s exactly how it should be. However, for explanation's sake: A vagrant arrives in a new town where the cops do next to nothing and a brutal crime boss acts as king of the city. Well, after seeing how bad it is, the vagrant takes things into his own hands…WITH A SHOTGUN.

That’s it. It feels like a genuine grindhouse flick in its simplicity, which is why I think it’s the best of the fictitious Grindhouse adaptations.

Only Rutger Hauer Could Bring This Much Gravitas To Such A Ridiculous Movie

Nobody besides Danny Trejo could play Machete. It's like he was born for the part. Trejo is just perfect as a badass who kicks butt, and doesn’t even ask questions later. He doesn’t even text (because “Machete don’t text”). The point is, he fits the role of this ridiculous character perfectly, and the world around him is just as ridiculous.

However, Hobo is a little different. Because the world around the “hobo” is outlandish (I’m talking The Toxic Avenger, Troma outlandish), but the character himself isn’t. I'll explain. Hauer’s homeless man arrives in town, wanting to start a new life, but he’s immediately taken aback by just how horrid things are there. When he tries to help, he learns that the police are corrupt, and he gets brutally beaten.

He eventually meets a sex worker named Abby (Molly Dunsworth), and she takes care of him, but once he’s back on the streets, he’s filmed chewing glass in order to make money for a lawnmower. It’s only when he goes into a pawn shop to buy said lawnmower that he witnesses a robbery, and he’s had enough. He pulls a shotgun off the shelf and blows them away. Hauer does this with - dare I say - gravitas.

Yes, this whole movie is ridiculous - especially the villains, who I’ll get into next - but Hauer plays it as straight as possible, which makes him sympathetic, but also somehow credible, and I feel like nobody else could do it better.

The Villains In This One Are Second To None In Their Cruelty

There is nothing better than a good villain, especially in a grindhouse film, and we get some genuinely stellar ones in Hobo. The city is run by a ruthless crime lord named “The Drake” (Brian Downey) who seems like he’d fit right in during a live-action Punisher story. The Drake has two sons, and he’s quite open about which one’s his favorite. His preferred son is named “Slick” (Gregory Smith), and he has no problem with killing homeless people for fun. The other son, Ivan (Nick Bateman) is a bit less intelligent, but still just as brutal, breaking arms with pleasure.

But, just as bad are the police, as they’re in cahoots with The Drake family. In one scene, Slick, Ivan, and the Chief of Police slice the word “scum” into the hobo's chest and then dispose of him - literally - in the dumpster.

This movie is like a video game, though, in that it almost feels like it has mini bosses. Once the hobo kills Slick, The Drake calls in two metal menaces called “The Plague” and they hunt the hobo down through a hospital in a truly awesome scene.

The pacing in this movie is superb, and it’s like the hobo keeps meeting different challenges along his way to the final boss, which is The Drake. Best of all, the violence is deliciously brutal, just like a good grindhouse movie should be.

It's Also Probably The Funniest Of The Movies That Spawned From Grindhouse

I talked about how I love “bad movies,” and it’s mostly because I find them funny. A good example of this would be M. Night Shyamalan’s The Happening, which is one of the funniest movies I’ve ever seen. Unlike, say, Signs, which I’ve come to love, The Happening’s plot is solid, but it’s done in such an absurd way (with equally silly acting) that I can’t possibly take it seriously. I assume this wasn’t intentional, but who knows? It just might have been.

Well, it’s much more difficult to intentionally make a story ridiculous, and still make it funny. Because even though I think the Machete movies are great, I think they go a bit too far at times to be funny, and it’s almost like they're trying too hard. Thanksgiving is a bit more effective in the humor department, but I think Hobo nails it perfectly, as it’s consistently funny, and I think it’s mostly because Hauer is playing it so straight.

For example, when he’s talking about the solitary strength of bears, or giving a heartfelt monologue to babies in a maternity ward, you can tell that HE’S taking it seriously, even though it’s absolutely bonkers. In fact, the whole movie is like this. What makes it a great comedy is that you could take Hauer and put him in a more serious movie, and the character would still work. But, he’s not in a more serious movie. He’s in this ludicrous film, and that’s why it works so well.

Do you also love Hobo With a Shotgun? I’d love to hear your thoughts!