The Matador [HD DVD]

The Matador [HD DVD]
by Richard Shepard

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DVD Cover Information

Actor: Arlin Miller, Azucena Medina, Jonah Meyerson, Pierce Brosnan, Wiveca Bonerais
Director: Richard Shepard
Brand: WELLSPRING/GENIUS
DVD: Region Code 0
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.66:1
Running Time: 97 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2006-12-19
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: The Weinstein Company Home Entertainment

Movie Reviews of The Matador [HD DVD]

Movie Review: Underappreciated actors show their range
Summary: 4 Stars

This film can't be categorized and that's a good thing. The tone of the movie stands on the line between parady/satire and drama. Of course the subject of murder is serious and we shouldn't take it lightly. Brosnan plays a hit man who starts to feel remorse and longs for human connection. Kinnear plays a 'normal' businessman with real life worries and a life that Brosnan's character is drawn to. The question is, who will pulled into whose life. Much of the film covers both characters everday life events so we know a lot of who the are and what they do. In spite of the subject matter it isn't a flashy movie but much is done with subtlety. This movie deserved much more praise and exposure than what it got. Hopefully many have found it on dvd.

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All The Matador [HD DVD] Movie Reviews

Summary of The Matador [HD DVD]

Pierce Brosnan gives one of his finest performances in The Matador, a low-key buddy comedy with an agreeably sinister twist. Light-years from his former James Bond image, Brosnan is unshaven, unnerved and unpredictable as freelance assassin Julian Noble, who encounters desperate businessman Danny Wright (Greg Kinnear) in the bar of a modern Mexico City hotel. Danny is intrigued when Julian reveals that he's a "facilitator of fatalities," and his wife "Bean" (Hope Davis) is equally fascinated when Julian shows up unexpectedly, six months later, at Danny's home in Denver. Having lost his touch as a reliable hit-man, Julian needs Danny's help with "one last job," but the logistics of Julian's lethal profession (involving an employer played by Philip Baker Hall) are secondary to writer-director Richard Shepard's offbeat, slightly uneven character study, which gives Kinnear and Brosnan a memorable opportunity to riff on their established screen personas. In making Julian a likable yet tormented drifter who's made a habit of "running from any emotion," Brosnan creates an edgy yet sympathetic character as mysterious as he is fun to be around; if you're going to befriend a hired killer, you could do far worse than a guy like Julian. As Brosnan plays him, he's worthy of a sequel, but The Matador is the kind of entertainingly quirky movie that's a hard act to follow. --Jeff Shannon

Equal parts buddy movie and black comedy The Matador is one of those tidy indie films that is both mildly heartwarming and subtly offensive. In a conscious effort to shed his smooth image as James Bond Pierce Brosnan shines or rather slimes as end of the road hitman Julian Noble while Greg Kinnear applies his requisite charm to the role of Danny Wright the whitebread Denver businessman with a mischievous streak. The two men cross paths in a very kitschy Mexico City amidst the neon lights salty margaritas and chihuahuas and spark up a sometimes touching friendship. The tone of the film is woefully uneven as the crass jokes and quickie sex scenes fail to maintain a balance with the more saccharine moments such as the image of a couple at the grave site of their young son set against an inappropriate soundtrack of blaring pop music. That being said it is a delight to view the former 007 in a new light; with a 5 o'clock shadow donning a gold chain and fake tattoos visibly lusting after a margarita in the same way he ogled a prostitute's bare bottom only a few hours earlier. The supporting cast is also stellar although shamefully underused.System Requirements:Run Time: 93 minsFormat: DVD HD Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE Rating: R UPC: 796019797078 Manufacturer No: 79707

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