This impressive documentary traces the career of the
Actor who left behind a life of crime to win roles in a string of
Hollywood action movies
You would need a heart of stone not to enjoy this documentary about actor Danny Trejo, star of the cult Machete pictures, whose extraordinary life took him from a boyhood in the tough Pacioma district of
Los Angeles, heroin abuse in his teens, violent crime in early adulthood and then jail time in various institutions, where his terrifying alpha-Latino image and
boxing skills earned him a reputation as someone not to be messed with.
After he was released, he went to AA, got clean, and landed a
Job as a coach and then as an extra on a film set. He became adored by film-makers and casting directors as the real deal, a tough guy whose tattoos alone were enough to terrify. He rose from non-speaking parts (billed as Inmate #1, Gangbanger #1 etc) to speaking roles in movies such as Heat, Desperado, Con Air and family movies including Spy Kids; his gift for granite-faced black
comedy in Robert Rodriguez’s Mexploitation film Machete made him a legend. He also became a friend of ex-con, pulp novelist and actor Eddie Bunker (Mr Blue in Reservoir Dogs), who probably deserves a documentary of his own.