The Matador (HD-DVD)
Picture:
B Sound: B- Extras: C Film: C
Without
James Bond, Pierce Brosnan is still emulating the style of the character, even
when spoofing or extrapolating on it.
Spoofing is more of the point of Richard Shepherd’s The Matador (2004), an independent production The Weinstein Company
decided to pick up. Brosnan is old
hitman Julian Noble, who meets a somewhat older salesman (Greg Kinnear) when
eating at a Mexican bar.
Danny
Wright (Kinnear) has a life that is almost all wrong, except for his wife (Hope
Davis) but with Noble might have a second chance at a successful business if he
goes in and will they go legitimate or will they team up for a new cycle of
well-paid assassinations? Unfortunately,
the film is no better than the overrated Kiss
Kiss Bang Bang (reviewed in both HD-DVD and Blu-ray elsewhere on this site)
and all Brosnan can do is repeat what he did in Remington Steele as a hitman versus a spy with a few decades added.
There was
a chance in Shepherd’s screenplay to make this work and the teaming with
Kinnear has its potential, but the film ultimately is once again about fooling
around with masculinity and genre instead of doing anything truly new with it
and a few missed opportunities figure in.
The domestic humor also has grown thin since the 1980s. Philip Baker Hall also stars.
The 2.35
X 1 1080p digital High Definition image was shot in Super 35mm film by David
Tattersall, B.S.C., who makes it look decent if not great. This is easily among the clearest of the
early Weinstein HD-DVD releases with good Video Black, though not a demo disc
for picture either. The Dolby Digital
5.1 at Plus levels shows its low-budget and dialogue-based limits, but is not
bad and has its moments. Rolfe Kent’s
score is often the highlight of the surrounds.
Also note that this disc offers some start-up troubles, so it is not
your machine.
Extras
include two audio commentaries with Director Shepherd, including one where he
is joined by Brosnan and Kinnear, deleted scenes, TV ad, original theatrical
trailer, making of featurette and a marketing featurette.
- Nicholas Sheffo
