Movie pimp! The Matador

[tiggymalvern]

So I could have stayed home to watch Seattle in the Superbowl, or I could have gone out seeking more slashy films. Tough choice, huh?

Here we have perfectly sick and twisted male bonding, with Pierce Brosnan as a sleazeball hitman with absolutely no social graces whatsoever, and Greg Kinnear as the desperate salesman he meets in a bar in Mexico. Some beautiful comedy moments, but even more than the outrageous dialogue, it's really the acting of the three leads (including Hope Davis as the salesman's wife) that makes this both so funny and so cringe-inducing. The perfect timing of expressions and reactions from all of them make you really feel those hideous moments and awkward silences as the 'normal people' deal with the weirdness of an assassin having a life crisis.

Kinnear and Brosnan are just brilliant as each man looks to the other for the solutions to the failings of their own life, and their performances give the film a degree of subtlety that what is basically a shallow, campy, popcorn movie would otherwise lack. Not a film to make you think, just great fun!

And now I have to nick a line from this film and go and make an icon *eg*

Comments

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

I had very little idea who he is, and having checked imdb, I still don't. He's been in a lot of films I haven't seen (What? You thought I was into 'You Got Mail?' XD) and a couple I've seen but can't say I've noticed him.

But in this he's superb, and he should get more work! Preferably with people he obviously clicked with as well as he did his co-stars here.

[darthhellokitty.livejournal.com]

Yes, you DO have to make that icon!

I was falling over laughing at *so* many lines in the movie... never have I seen Pierce Brosnan so deeply unappealing, and yet so riveting! ;-)

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

First I have to search through my Mexico rips yet again to find the right image(s) - I guess it could be worse!

I'm with you on Brosnan. It's impressive how he manages to be so unattractive in this, yet somehow still kind of charming and sexual at the same time. I've always loved his touch with comedy, though, and it's good to see him really get his teeth into it here.

This didn't have me howling as much as 'Kiss Kiss Bang Bang', but I guess it depends on whether your taste in sick humour leans more towards madness with corpses or inappropriate sexual references XD

[nekojita.livejournal.com]

I've heard a lot of good things about the movie, and how it's probably Pierce Brosnan's best role. I'll definitely have to try and catch it... on dvd/cable, knowing how rarely I go out to the movies.

So, do you hate me now? :-P Though I spent the night chatting about the immense sexiness of Reno instead of watching the game on the tv that a coworker smuggled in.

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

I love Pierce Brosnan, but he hasn't always been asked to stretch himself in the past, it's true! The movie's great fun, and it knows it's slashy and plays right into it. There is no subtlety here - not with Julian Noble around!

The only reason I know the result of the game is because someone on my f-list posted XD

[nekojita.livejournal.com]

I knew the game was over when my coworker returned to his station after spending most of the night in another room watching the game, and he informed me of the result. Oh yes, it so made my night. *rolls eyes*

And PB has been saying that he thinks no longer being James Bond is one of the best things to happen to his career. He definitely loved the Matador role, and is down saying that he'd love to do a sequel or prequel.

[tiggymalvern.livejournal.com]

I can only imagine how much fun that film must have been to make XD