‘Dead in Tombstone’ Blu-ray Review: Danny Trejo Never Looked This Good

“As a ruthless gang overruns a small mining town, they murder their own leader, Guerrero Hernandez (Danny Trejo), in a cold-blooded power grab. Sentenced to eternity in hell, Guerrero finds himself confronted by Satan himself (Mickey Rourke), offering a daring proposition: deliver the six souls of his former gang and he will escape damnation. With time running out, he sets out on a brutal rampage to avenge his own death!”

Yes, the story of Dead in Tombstone (available now on Blu-ray/DVD) is as simple as the synopsis suggests. After the first 30 minute set-up, things are put in motion and like in a videogame the hero must go through levels and “bosses” to accomplish his mission. The pace is good and the action keeps coming in all possible forms for a Western: Shootouts, fights and quite a few explosions.

The mix of fantasy and Western tropes is done in a dark and and organic way. It feels like a supernatural tale set in the past, not like a force genre mash-up. Sadly, it runs out of steam on the second half and the dynamic of ‘Guerrero’ being killed and resurrected gets too repetitive. Trejo and Rourke don’t shine in the acting department but their presence is powerful enough to serve the needs of their respective scenes.

What is really striking is how good everything and everyone in this straight to DVD production look. Some sequences in Dead in Tombstone are better than what you may see in a mega blockbusters. Like Zack Snyder or some Korean directors, Roel Reiné (who also directed Death Race: Inferno for Universal) crafts impressive sequences combining a great photography with slow motion and creative CGI.

Not a movie to die for, but most action fans may find it more satisfying than the Machete saga.