The result of such typecasting can often be limited roles but with ‘The Matador’ he has thrown down the gauntlet to the Bill Murray’s of the world and showed that he has a broader range than we had previously thought, In writer-director Richard Shepard’s dark comedy, Brosnan puts in a mature considered performance, and in doing so, has raised his ante considerably.

Brosnan plays Julian Noble, a contract killer (who describes what he does as ‘facilitating fatalities’, specialising in what he calls ‘corporate gigs’) who lives a hedonistic lifestyle which revolves around booze and prostitutes.

In Mexico to facilitate another fatality, Julian – the job done – gets smashed in the bar of his hotel. There he meets Danny (Greg Kinnear), a Mr. Normal businessman. We saw Danny leaving his home in Denver, saying goodbye to his wife Bean (Hope Davis), a tree having fallen through the roof of their house in a storm. The tree thing was a device to prove just how unlucky Danny is. He has had a ‘bad couple of years’ and is now in Mexico to try and secure a business deal which could change his circumstances. The two men get talking and it becomes apparent just how lonely Julian is. When Danny tells him about the death of his son, Julian counters ill-advisedly with a dirty joke. Not impressed Danny ends the conversation.

When the two meet the next day, Julian is contrite and offers to make it up to Danny by taking him to a bullfight. At the bullfight, Julian reveals his occupation to a disbelieving Danny. In a brilliant sequence Julian walks and talks him through what would be involved in the slaying of a guy sitting across from them.

Things go awry when Julian asks the mild-mannered Danny to assist him with his next job. And it looks like the friendship is irreparably finished.

We watch then as Julian ‘facilitates’ in cities across the globe. We also see him partaking in his various pleasure habits. All seems normal until we learn that he is actually losing ‘it’.

Then Julian turns up at Danny’s home in Denver late one snowy night. That’s enough of the plot giveaway, but there is a lot to come after that point.

Any movie which opens with The Jam’s majestic ‘Town Called Malice’ is going to be good, and The Matador does not disappoint. As Messrs. Weller, Foxton and Buckler blast out their Motown-inspired magic, we watch a gnarled, grizzly Pierce Brosnan wake up. Throughout the movie, Brosnan is brilliant as his foul-mouthed, detached, charming Julian goes though a mid-life crisis of sorts. It is the actor’s best role and marks a new dawn for him. He has, in one fell swoop, very firmly and successfully, buried the ghost of Ian Fleming’s most famous creation to boot. A scene where Julian walks through the lobby of a hotel dressed only in Speedos and boots with sunglasses on and a drink in hand perfectly encapsulates the role.

Greg Kinnear and Hope Davis offer brilliant support too. Two of the best character actors working today, they offer a mirror to what Julian is. While he has a glamorous job, obvious confidence, plenty money etc., he lacks friends, real purpose and a home. Shepard’s script is quite superb. An offbeat, lo-fi, quirky tale, it is one of those, which – like ‘Sideways’, ‘Broken Flowers’ etc. – hits the mark so well without any of the flash showboating Hollywood likes so much.

‘The Matador’, then, is well worth a look and is probably one of the year’s best offerings so far.

Sean Walsh lives with his wife and two children near the town Killala in Co. Mayo. As a music and arts writer his work has appeared in publications such as artswest, CAFE News, Céide Review, magpie magazine, Hot Press and Irish Music magazine. He is also currently film critic with the Connaught Telegraph newspaper. After dropping out of college while studying Philosophy, he blagged his way into working in arts administration, which he still does. Currently completing an Open University Hons Degree in Humanities (one more module to go), he hopes to get down to serious writing soon.

© 2006 Laura Hird All rights reserved.