Matador

1986, Comedy/Drama, 1h 42m

26 Reviews 10,000+ Ratings

What to know

critics consensus

Intertwining murder and seduction, Pedro Almodóvar's Matador is a provocative thriller that will shock even the most adventurous moviegoers. Read critic reviews

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Matador Photos

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Movie Info

Forced to retire after a goring, matador Diego Montez (Nacho Martínez) has since become a teacher. Among his students is Angel (Antonio Banderas), a naive boy so perversely desperate to impress that he attempts to rape Diego's girlfriend, Eva (Eva Cobo). He fails, but turns himself in regardless, also confessing to a series of murders he's recently seen in psychic visions. A lawyer (Assumpta Serna) steps in to defend him, but the police are unconvinced Angel is the real culprit.
  • Rating:
    NC-17
  • Genre:
    Comedy, Drama
  • Original Language:
    Spanish
  • Director:
    Pedro Almodóvar
  • Writer:
    Pedro Almodóvar
  • Release Date (Theaters):
     original
  • Release Date (Streaming):
  • Runtime:
  • Sound Mix:
    Stereo

Cast & Crew

Assumpta Serna
María Cardenal
Antonio Banderas
Ángel
Nacho Martínez
Diego Montez
Eva Cobo
Eva
Julieta Serrano
Berta Giménez
Chus Lampreave
Pilar
Carmen Maura
Julia
Eusebio Poncela
Comisario del Valle
Bibiana Fernández
Vendedora Flores
Luis Ciges
Guarda Mariano
Eva Siva
Asistenta María y Diego
Veronica Forque
Periodista
Jaime Chávarri
Sacerdote
Pedro Almodóvar
Writer
Pedro Almodóvar
Director
Show all Cast & Crew

Critic Reviews for Matador

All Critics (26) | Top Critics (12) | Fresh (24) | Rotten (2)
Full Review… Variety Staff Variety Full Review… Peter Travers People Magazine Full Review… Jay Boyar Orlando Sentinel Full Review… Jonathan Rosenbaum Chicago Reader Full Review… Geoff Andrew Time Out Full Review… Kim Newman Empire Magazine Full Review… Candice Russell South Florida Sun-Sentinel Full Review… Harriet Waugh The Spectator Full Review… Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Full Review… John A. Nesbit Old School Reviews Full Review… Fernando F. Croce CinePassion Full Review… Cole Smithey ColeSmithey.com
View All Critic Reviews (26)

Audience Reviews for Matador

  • Feb 11, 2014
    The film starts with a strong narrative and story but soon falls into silly supernatural, cop-out storytelling that discredits the entire film with its abrupt and unwarranted shift in story to dig its way out of a plot hole Almodóvar couldn't fix.
    Jason 123 D Super Reviewer
  • May 20, 2013
    Very dark for Almodovar. It's almost a giallo.
    Marcus W Super Reviewer
  • Nov 20, 2012
    Looking past all the absurdities the film has to offer, Matador is essentially a dark romantic comedy at its core. With passion and obsession meeting fueling the characters' actions, Almodvar steps up and shows audiences he isn't afraid to tell original stories.
    paul o Super Reviewer
  • Feb 20, 2009
    Whoa! Hahaha! Well well... Who could actually see this coming? Not even the lunatic events in Mujeres al Borde de un Ataque de Nervios could prepare us for this lunacy ride of necrophilia, sexual tango and sadomasochistic perversions. The NC-17 rating is surely a sign of America's nauseating conservatism, but admit it or not, this film is geniusly bold and cinematically atypical. The first five minutes prepare us for the psychological mess that lies ahead, but I literally fell in love with the climax, no matter the preposterous events that led to it, under the excuse that "there are certain things that escape reason". So what?! The film has several film inspirations behind and is not afraid to show them! The traditional Spanish art of bullfighting meets a provocative sexual obsession. 94/100
    Edgar C Super Reviewer
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