Latinos were in front of the camera for more than sixty films in 2013, and two of the standouts–though very different films–are available on Tuesday
If you wanted to choose two films to show just how far and wide talented Latinos have spread in Hollywood today, you couldn’t choose two better examples than Machete Kills and Instructions Not Included. They have some odd similarities: they are both the creations of strong Latino personalities behind the camera as well as on the set, and both of them generated unexpected results in 2013.
Machete Kills was expected to be one of the big Latino hits of last year. After all, it was a Robert Rodriguez film, and a sequel to Rodriguez’ hugely successful Machete. And it featured half of the working Latino actors in Hollywood, from Danny Trejo to Demián Bichir to Sofía Vergara and on and on–basically everyone who was in The Counselor.
Instructions Not Included, on the other hand, was virtually unknown before it arrived. Though Eugenio Derbez, the film’s director/co-writer/star, was a major name in Mexico, his exposure in the United States was limited at best, and this gentle and warm family dramady had no other stores and no ‘sexy’ log line.
Then came the surprises:
The much-anticipated Machete Kills bombed. From opening weekend forward, it was a disappointment; ultimately, it became one of the worst openings of the year on a per-screen basis, and the worst opening for a sequel in Hollywood history.
Meanwhile, Instructions Not Included exploded, even in limited release. The per-screen numbers for its paltry few theaters were four times the average for a successful opening. The next week the number of screen doubled, and the numbers were still crazy good. Ultimately it never had the chance to break into the four figures in numbers of screens, but it still made more than 40 million dollars domestically, and that much again in Mexico, making it one of the best “return on investment” films of the year, and the single most profitable foreign language film of the year.
What happened where? And why? Now you can be the judge by getting a look at both in the privacy of your own flat screen. And to help you along the way, we’re giving away two copies of the Instructions Not Included DVD–a personal gift from Eugenio to us to you (and what more could you want)? See the post at the top of the page for details.
It’s a crazy world, cinematically speaking. But it sure makes for an enjoyable movie night or two.
