'The Matador'

This movie will catch you by surprise. And I mean that in a good way. It has a very unconventional, independent style to it in its acting, directing and overall feel. It is a dark, more-dramatic-than-thrilling comedy. But for a movie about a washed up hit-man (portrayed by Pierce Brosnan) it had a bit less action then I had hoped for — especially for an R-rated movie.

I couldn’t help but think how ready Pierce must have been to make this movie. In almost every big role he has played something close to James Bond. In this one that was not the case. He played a very pathetic, sloppy character, and there was no second-guessing him in this role. The audience bought it immediately. He looked like he had a lot of fun making this movie. I haven’t confirmed that yet with him, but when we get together for brunch next week I’ll ask him.

Greg Kinnear and Hope Davis played a very interesting yet very average couple who provided a good dimension of contrast into the story, all the while doing a fine job of not being generic (which is not always easy to do while playing the “average” couple). They were both entertaining and easy to relate to.

Even though Brosnan gave such a brilliant performance, parts about his ironic role bothered me a little bit. It’s just kind of disturbing to find yourself rooting for a guy who would kill you without a second thought if someone paid him enough to do it. I couldn’t help but think how his victims probably didn’t deserve to die and their families would miss them. Sorry to be Bummer Bob here; I’m just being honest. There is a little bit of moral consolation toward the end, though. And, parents — leave the kiddies at home, because the “F” bomb is dropped quite a bit. Also, there are almost as many sex scenes in this movie as there are on a single computer nerd’s hard drive. But have fun. All in all, “The Matador” is a good night at the theatre.