MACHETE Recut with THE SOCIAL NETWORK trailer from scott hutcheson on Vimeo

The story revolves around an illegal immigrant, Machete Cortez (Danny Trejo), a former Mexican Federale turned renegade. The film opens in Mexico with Machete on a mission to rescue a kidnapped girl. During the operation he crossed his corrupt Chief as well as the powerful drug lord, Rogelio Torrez (Steven Seagal) who kills Machete's wife and daughter, leaving him for dead thereafter. Three years later a down and out Machete roams Texas looking to do yard work in exchange for money. Michael Booth (Jeff Fahey), a local businessman and spin doctor, explains to Machete that the corrupt Senator McLaughlin (Robert De Niro) is sending hundreds of illegals out of the country. In order to stop this, Booth offers Machete $150,000 to kill McLaughlin. Machete accepts the murder contract after being threatened by Michael if he doesn't. While Machete is watching McLaughlin from a rooftop during a rally, he is double-crossed and one of Booth's henchmen shoots him and then shoots Senator McLaughlin in the leg. It is revealed that Booth orchestrated the entire attempted assassination as part of a false flag operation to gain public support for McLaughlin's campaign so that a more secure border is put in place. By setting up Machete as the gunman, the conspirators make it appear that an outlaw illegal Mexican immigrant has tried to assassinate the senator.

An injured Machete escapes capture by Booth and is taken to a Mexican network hospital to be treated for wounds, escaping once again from Booth's henchmen at the hospital. Agent Sartana Rivera (Jessica Alba), a persistent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent, is sent by her superior to find and capture the injured Machete. Machete, with the help of Luz (Michelle Rodriguez) recruits Padre (Cheech Marin), Machete's "holy" brother. To take revenge on Booth, Machete romances and then kidnaps Booth's wife and his daughter, April (Lindsay Lohan), who has a penchant for guns. He also collects evidence from Booth's house linking Senator McLaughlin and the Mexican drug lord in major drugs trafficking deal. After encountering Machete, Sartana begins to develop an interest in him. Booth kills Padre after finding Machete's hideout, but does not find his wife and daughter, and unbeknown to Booth the church has hidden cameras watching him. Through the recordings, the news of McLaughlin's corruption and faked assassination is eventually aired on national television. This causes McLaughlin to kill Booth out of anger and heads back to join Rogelio Torrez to kill Machete. In order to eliminate the people who double crossed him, Machete gathers the Mexican Network and leads them to the base of the border vigilantes, led by Von Jackson (Don Johnson). During this confrontation the Mexican immigrants triumph over the border vigilantes. Jackson is killed by a shot to the back of the head fired by Luz (who was lying in wait for him inside his jeep) while trying to escape the warzone and Machete fights Torrez, culminating with the drug lord committing seppuku with one of Machete's blades that he had just been stabbed with. Senator McLaughlin later runs and is killed by the last remnants of his own border vigilante group (led by the new recruit seen earlier in the film) who mistake him for a Mexican. The film ends with Machete being brought legal status papers by Sartana Rivera and riding off with her into the night.

Before the credits roll, the announcer says that Machete will return in Machete Kills and Machete Kills Again.