The thing that I liked about this film was seeing Pierce Brosnan act completely against type. Perhaps he"s keen to rid himself of any type-casting problems in the future because in The Matador the only characteristic that his character Julien Nobel has in common with James Bond is his charm with women. Besides that he"s self loathing and an alcoholic
And instead of being licensed to kill by Her Majesty, he"s a hired hit-man.
On a job in Mexico he meets mild-mannered salesman Danny played by Greg Kinnear. They"re not the most likely of friends. Nobel has a bit of fun with him by teaching him a few of his assassin tricks and gives him some marital advice
Basically Nobel is a wreck, he"s burnt out and thinking about quitting the assassin business. And this is the strangest part - Danny helps him overcome his fears.
It"s a little long for a comedy and the midsection drags noticeably but it"s a bit different to most films
Brosnan gives a winning performance. And Hope Davis also entertains as Danny"s wife but Kinnear doesn"t give his best performance.