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Matador (1986) 6.9
Ex-bullfighter who is getting turned on by killing, lady lawyer with same problem and young man driven insane by over-religious upbringing - these are the main characters in this stylish ... See full summary » Director:Pedro Almodóvar |
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Title: Matador (1986)
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Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Assumpta Serna | ... | ||
| Antonio Banderas | ... | ||
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Nacho Martínez | ... |
Diego Montez
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Eva Cobo | ... |
Eva
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Julieta Serrano | ... |
Berta Giménez
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Chus Lampreave | ... |
Pilar
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| Carmen Maura | ... |
Julia
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Eusebio Poncela | ... |
Comisario del Valle
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Bibiana Fernández | ... |
Vendedora Flores
(as Bibi Andersen)
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Luis Ciges | ... |
Guarda Mariano
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Eva Siva | ... |
Asistenta María y Diego
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| Verónica Forqué | ... |
Periodista
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Pepa Merino | ... |
Secretaria María
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Lola Peno | ... |
Alumna 1ª
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Marisa Tejada | ... |
Alumna 2ª
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Plot Summary
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Storyline
Ex-bullfighter who is getting turned on by killing, lady lawyer with same problem and young man driven insane by over-religious upbringing - these are the main characters in this stylish black comedy about dark sides of human nature. Written by Dragan Antulov <dragan.antulov@altbbs.fido.hr>
Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)
Rated NC-17 for aberrant sexuality including violence | See all certifications »Parents Guide:
View content advisory »
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See full technical specs »
Details
Country:
SpainLanguage:
SpanishRelease Date:
7 March 1986 (Spain) See more »Also Known As:
The Bullfighter See more »Filming Locations:
Madrid, SpainBox Office
Gross:
ESP 118,531,805 (Spain)Company Credits
Show detailed
company contact information
on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
MonoColor:
ColorAspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1
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Matador is one of the strangest, darkest, (and yet compelling) early films from Spanish master filmmaker Pedro Amoldovar.
It is completely nuts.
Pour in equal measures of sadism, masochism, bullfighting, perverted sexuality, and sexual violence. Add in a splash of comedy and soupcon of star-crossed lovers (if, for a moment, you thought pairing Tybalt and Lady McBeth qualified as star-crossed) and you have what passes as characterisation. Mix dark nights with gaudy flamenco colours and you have some striking cinematography. I'll come to the plot in a minute…
Amoldovar was clearly enjoying Spanish cinema's new-found, post-Franco sexual and artistic liberalism. The prudish among his audience might suggest he was positively wallowing in it. Whatever the truth, Matador is a masterpiece of his style, if not, indeed, a whole style in of itself.
The plot – or possibly a better description, the tapestry over which the characters move – is a murder hunt. Very few prizes will be won, however, for guessing the culprit/s. Two people are quickly in the audience's frame because they are shown… er… murdering people on camera. A third person (Banderas, in to my mind his best Amoldovar role) confesses to the murders in a fit of insecurity and remorse over an attempted rape ("some girls get all the luck" comments a female duty officer dryly, proving that feminism wasn't that big in Spain back in the 1980s). Nevertheless, the net soon closes on the crushingly obvious culprits (who in the meantime have developed quite a crush on each other). As previously mentioned, completely nuts.
Matador's strengths are in its characterisation and its sheer bare-facedness. Amoldovar has, as usual, assembled a character list of freaks and proceeded to humanise all of them – to the point where there is a genuine whiff of tragedy in the final act. To mention the great performances is really to rehearse the cast list. Assumpta Serna, Nacho Martinez, Antonio Banderas and Eva Cobo are all excellent. And it really is worth seeing, just for the young Antonio.
There are some interesting points made in the film about outsiders, liberalism, sexual politics and gender politics (as always with Amoldovar). I'll let you pick through them. It is, though, not so much a film as a giant red rag to the raging bull of conservatism, deftly whisked aside to the ragged applause of an admiring, if somewhat perplexed, audience. A positive Jimi Hendrix of a film, unpolished, with some definite dud notes, but undeniably the work of a genius. 8½/ 10