A triumphant showcase for Gael García Bernal, the film is a complex, thoughtful and warm homage to a real man. Our Cassandro review:
In a dark stadium, an empty alleyway, a trashed and red-washed hotel room, a slight wrestler feels the weight of the odds stacked against him. Whether it’s homophobia, abandonment or grief, his approach remains the same: Use his opponent as a ladder. The crueler they are, the higher he goes, buoyed by the sheer determination that his own star will shine so brightly that others may as well revel in his light. If he believes in his own freedom fiercely enough, maybe everyone else will, too.
The film picks up at the beginnings of Saúl’s journey to stardom. He’s the spry but mousy El Topo, a masked luchador who’s been fighting in tiny Juárez venues for a few years and just can’t convince any of his fellow, much larger wrestlers to take him seriously. It’s not that Saúl harbors too many illusions about himself or his prowess; it’s just that he wants to give the audience a show.
Back in El Paso, Saúl lives quietly as the only son to his heartbroken but devoted single mother . Their relationship is complicated and realistic; she encourages that one day he’ll find a good boy that he can take care of, but pines after Saúl’s missing father and resents her son’s ostentatiousness for driving him away.
As it turns out, repackaging this childhood sadness is Saúl’s superpower. Instead of discarding wrestling or his queerness, he starts to ascend by shedding the macho stature of the typical protagonist luchador and leaning into a performance of sly, wily limp-wristedness.
Williams’ direction takes two distinct styles for the film, shuffling between a softer approach to Saúl’s introspective puzzling through his inner life, and the explosive, hard-hitting fun of the ring. The softer side of Saúl is engaging and compassionate, but the matches are where the entire film comes to life.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Watch Bad Bunny and Gael García Bernal Get Steamy in 'Cassandro'See an exclusive clip from director Roger Ross Williams’ film about the gay lucha libre wrestler, which is about “living life without a mask”
Read more »
Gael García Bernal crushes it (and others) as 'Cassandro,' lucha libre's queer pioneerBernal flirts and struts and gives one of the best performances of his career in a film inspired by the life of Mexican American professional wrestling star Saúl Armendáriz.
Read more »
Watch 'stud' Bad Bunny and Gael García Bernal kiss in 'Cassandro' clip'Cassandro' made headlines out of Sundance because of a kiss between stars Gael García Bernal and Bad Bunny — and now, EW has an exclusive look at the scene.
Read more »
Review: ‘Cassandro’ shows Bernal at his infectious bestGabriel Garcia Bernal, far from the most brawny actor, has been a slyer shape-shifter, whether in heels as a femme fatale in Pedro Almodovar’s “Bad Education” or on a motorcycle a…
Read more »
Movie Review: 'Cassandro,' with Gabriel Garcia Bernal as a liberated luchador, is a winnerAnyone who has eagerly followed Gabriel Garcia Bernal since his breakthrough roles in “Amores Perros” and “Y tu mamá también” likely never foresaw him one day in the world of lucha libra wrestling.
Read more »
Brava Theater: Bernal Heights Outdoor Cinema 20th Anniversary - Best of Bernal Screening & PartyCome join us for our Season Finale in the main theater of Brava Theater for Women in the Arts and celebrate the filmmakers who have shared their
Read more »