Matador (film)
Encyclopedia
Matador is a 1986 film by Spanish
director Pedro Almodóvar
about a student matador
, Ángel Jimenez (Antonio Banderas
), who confesses to murders he didn't commit. Themes include sex, death, and religion.
The next day, Ángel's mother insists that he go to church as a condition of living in her home. After mass, she insists that he go to confession, but instead of confessing to the priest, he goes to the police station to confess to the rape. When Eva is brought to the station, she says he ejaculated before penetrating her and declines to press charges. Alone with the police detective (Eusebio Poncela
), Ángel notices photos of dead men with the same wound administered by the woman seen during his earlier spell of vertigo. He confesses to having killed them. The detective then asks about two missing women, who were also students of Diego, and Ángel confesses to killing them as well.
Although Ángel is able to lead the police to the bodies of the missing women, buried outside Diego's home, the police detective is not convinced. He questions how Ángel could have buried them there without Diego's knowledge, then discovers that Ángel has an alibi for the murder of one of the men. Finally, he discovers that Ángel faints at the sight of blood.
Meanwhile, Ángel's lawyer, María Cardenal (Assumpta Serna
), who is the same woman who was shown killing one of the men during Ángel's bout of vertigo in the practice ring, begins to suspect that Diego killed the two women students. She takes Diego to a remote house where she has been collecting memorabilia related to Diego since she first saw him kill a bull. They return to Diego's home, where Eva, who wants to convince Diego not to break up with her, overhears enough to realize that they are the killers. When María leaves, Eva tells Diego he has to take her back, since she knows everything. He says he will, but Eva also goes to María to tell her she must stay away from Diego, since Eva knows her secrets. María's reaction does not reassure Eva, and she goes to the police.
While Eva is telling the detective what she has heard, Ángel's psychiatrist (Carmen Maura
) calls the detective to tell him that Ángel has seen Diego and María in a vertigo trance, and that they are in danger. Ángel is able to guide them to María's remote house. Just as the police, Ángel, the psychiatrist, and Eva arrive, an eclipse begins, and they hear a gunshot. María has stabbed Diego between the shoulder blades and shot herself in the mouth as they were making love. Viewing the scene, the detective says that it is better this way and that he has never seen anyone happier.
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
director Pedro Almodóvar
Pedro Almodóvar
Pedro Almodóvar Caballero is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Almodóvar is arguably the most successful and internationally known Spanish filmmaker of his generation. His films, marked by complex narratives, employ the codes of melodrama and use elements of pop culture, popular...
about a student matador
Matador
A torero or toureiro is a bullfighter and the main performer in bullfighting, practised in Spain, Colombia, Portugal, Mexico, France and various other countries influenced by Spanish culture. In Spanish, the word torero describes any of the performers who actively participate in the bullfight...
, Ángel Jimenez (Antonio Banderas
Antonio Banderas
José Antonio Domínguez Banderas , better known as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish film actor, film director, film producer and singer...
), who confesses to murders he didn't commit. Themes include sex, death, and religion.
Plot
Diego asks Ángel if he is homosexual, noting that he is not experienced with women. Ángel says he is not and vows to prove himself. Later that day, Ángel attempts to rape Eva (Eva Cobo), a model who is both his neighbour and Diego's girlfriend. As she is leaving him, she trips in the mud and gashes her cheek. At the sight of her blood, Ángel faints.The next day, Ángel's mother insists that he go to church as a condition of living in her home. After mass, she insists that he go to confession, but instead of confessing to the priest, he goes to the police station to confess to the rape. When Eva is brought to the station, she says he ejaculated before penetrating her and declines to press charges. Alone with the police detective (Eusebio Poncela
Eusebio Poncela
Eusebio Poncela is a Spanish actor.His debut on stage was with the Federico Garcia Lorca play Mariana Pineda....
), Ángel notices photos of dead men with the same wound administered by the woman seen during his earlier spell of vertigo. He confesses to having killed them. The detective then asks about two missing women, who were also students of Diego, and Ángel confesses to killing them as well.
Although Ángel is able to lead the police to the bodies of the missing women, buried outside Diego's home, the police detective is not convinced. He questions how Ángel could have buried them there without Diego's knowledge, then discovers that Ángel has an alibi for the murder of one of the men. Finally, he discovers that Ángel faints at the sight of blood.
Meanwhile, Ángel's lawyer, María Cardenal (Assumpta Serna
Assumpta Serna
Assumpta Serna is a Spanish actress. She is known for her roles in I, The Worst of All portraying famous Mexican religious scholar Sor Juana, Nostradamus, The Craft, and Wild Orchid, although she may be most remembered for her role as Peninsular War guerrilla commander Teresa Moreno in the first...
), who is the same woman who was shown killing one of the men during Ángel's bout of vertigo in the practice ring, begins to suspect that Diego killed the two women students. She takes Diego to a remote house where she has been collecting memorabilia related to Diego since she first saw him kill a bull. They return to Diego's home, where Eva, who wants to convince Diego not to break up with her, overhears enough to realize that they are the killers. When María leaves, Eva tells Diego he has to take her back, since she knows everything. He says he will, but Eva also goes to María to tell her she must stay away from Diego, since Eva knows her secrets. María's reaction does not reassure Eva, and she goes to the police.
While Eva is telling the detective what she has heard, Ángel's psychiatrist (Carmen Maura
Carmen Maura
Carmen García Maura is a Spanish actress. In a career that has spanned six decades, Maura is best known for her collaborations with noted Spanish film director Pedro Almodóvar.-Early life:...
) calls the detective to tell him that Ángel has seen Diego and María in a vertigo trance, and that they are in danger. Ángel is able to guide them to María's remote house. Just as the police, Ángel, the psychiatrist, and Eva arrive, an eclipse begins, and they hear a gunshot. María has stabbed Diego between the shoulder blades and shot herself in the mouth as they were making love. Viewing the scene, the detective says that it is better this way and that he has never seen anyone happier.
Reviews
- "The movie looks terrific and is acted with absolute, straight-faced conviction by the excellent cast headed by Miss Serna, Mr. Martinez and Mr. Banderas. Matador is of most interest as another work in the career of a filmmaker who, possibly, is in the process of refining a singular talent.."The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
- In the book Almodovar on Almodovar, the director admitted that he considered this and KikaKikaKika is a 1993 Spanish language Pedro Almodóvar film starring Verónica Forqué as the title character.-Plot:Kika , a young, bubbly aspiring actress turned cosmetologist, is called to the cottage of Nicholas Pierce , an American freelance writer who has moved to Spain to write about game hunting, to...
to be his two weakest films.
External links
- Almodovar's 'Matador,' Surrealist Sex Comedy, The New York Times
- The Spinning Image (Detailed Review)