Brosnan stars as Julian Noble, a hit man who tells a hotel bartender that his business is his pleasure. But that’s not exactly true. Something’s happening to Julian, something he’s never encountered before. After decades of going about the job of executing total strangers, he’s losing his taste for his chosen profession.
What does a hit man do when he begins to question his ability to handle the job? An intriguing question, isn’t it? There isn’t a support group for someone in that particular position. For Julian, the answer to trying to rid himself of his self-doubt is to absorb large quantities of alcohol and engage in hours and hours of sex. When that proves ineffective, Julian turns to a total stranger for a little companionship and support.
Alone on his birthday, Julian strikes up a conversation with traveling businessman Danny Wright (Greg Kinnear) in a hotel bar in Mexico. Now mind you, this guy has lived a solitary life – his profession demands it – so he’s not the best at engaging in small talk with random strangers. His lack of tact quickly offends Danny (making an off-color joke in response to a tragic personal disclosure isn’t the way to win friends or influence enemies), but he offers to make up for the error by treating his new acquaintance to seats at a bullfight.
One thing leads to another and Danny, this complete stranger who just happened to be drinking a margarita at the same bar as a conflicted hit man, soon finds himself the sole confidante of a hired gun who has no one else to turn to. Though the men have nothing in common, a bizarre bond is formed between the struggling businessman and the worn out killer.
It’s easy to tell how much Brosnan relished this particular role as he practically licks his lips in pleasure after nailing key scenes. Brosnan and Kinnear, though an unlikely pairing, create a thoroughly likeable team onscreen. Despite the fact Brosnan’s playing a killer for hire, these two characters are made appealing by the first-rate performances of the two leads along with the smart, snappy writing and crisp direction of Shepard (the movie reminded me a lot of a Quentin Tarantino film).
Those who go into “The Matador” expecting Brosnan in another Bond-ish action thriller will be disappointed. Little time is devoted to Brosnan’s character actually carrying out his ‘jobs’. When Shepard does allow us to see the hit man at work, the killings come across as quick and clean. We’re spared the blood by the director cutting away from the targets or focusing on the gun or Brosnan after the shots are fired. “The Matador” isn’t about all that. The hit man aspect of the film is simply used as a launching pad for the real story. The movie’s really about the connection made between two men who are polar opposites.
“The Matador” is a very cleverly fashioned story that takes a punchline of a premise and molds it into a thoroughly enjoyable feature-length comedy. Writer/director Shepard doesn’t bother with a lot of side stories. He serves up two interesting characters and lets them carry the plot without a lot of unnecessary contrivances.
GRADE: B+
"The Matador" was directed by Richard Shepard and is rated R for strong sexual content and language.
