Cassandro is a 2023 American biographical drama film directed by Roger Ross Williams, from a screenplay by Ross Williams and David Teague. It stars Gael García Bernal, Roberta Colindrez, Perla De La Rosa, Joaquín Cosío, Raúl Castillo, El Hijo del Santo and Bad Bunny. It had its world premiere at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival on January 20, 2023, and is scheduled to be released by Amazon Studios via Prime Video.
Plot
In the early 1980s, gay wrestler Saúl Armendáriz lives in El Paso, Texas, and regularly crosses the border to Ciudad Juárez in Mexico to participate in lucha libre wrestling matches. He wrestles as El Topo until he meets a new trainer, Sabrina, who suggests he should compete as an exótico, leading to his new identity and increasing success as Cassandro
Cast
- Gael García Bernal as Saúl Armendáriz / Cassandro
- Roberta Colindrez as Sabrina
- Perla De La Rosa as Yocasta
- Raúl Castillo as Gerardo / El Comandante
- Joaquín Cosío as Lorenzo
- El Hijo del Santo as himself
- Bad Bunny as Felipe
Production
In July 2020, Gael García Bernal joined the cast of the film, with Roger Ross Williams set to direct from a screenplay he wrote alongside David Teague, with Amazon Studios in negotiations to distribute. They wrote the screenplay over the course of several years. Cassandro is Williams’ first narrative film. He previously told Cassandro’s story in his 2016 documentary short The Man Without a Mask. In June 2021, Roberta Colindrez and Bad Bunny joined the cast of the film, with Amazon Studios officially set to distribute. The music score is by Marcelo Zarvos. The film features songs from the disco era such as “Call Me” by Blondie and “Yes Sir, I Can Boogie” by Baccara
Gallery
Reception
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 100% based on 37 reviews, with an average rating of 8.2/10. On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 81 out of 100 based on 12 critics, indicating “universal acclaim”. David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter called the film an “entertaining biopic, which doubles as a gorgeous depiction of mother-son love and an exhilarating exploration of fearless queer identity in a macho environment,” adding, “Gael García Bernal nails his best role in years, giving a performance steeped in cheeky humor, resilience and radical self-belief.” Carlos Aguilar of Indiewire rated the film a B+, writing, “‘Cassandro’ balances the triumphant exaltation of Arbendáriz’s singular evolution as a trailblazer who didn’t set out to become one, with the obvious, still not entirely eliminated bigotry that made his trajectory so significant and groundbreaking in the first place.” Ross Bonaime of Collider wrote that the film “is both riveting and often touching, and Bernal gives quite possibly his best performance in this beautiful story of finding yourself and becoming who you were always supposed to be.
Where to Stream or Watch
Amazon Prime Video as of 05/18/2023
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