Saul Almendariz
Seen at...
Cassandro, the Exotico!
- Director: Marie Losier
- Writer: Marie Losier; Antoine Barraud
CGiii Comment
When a documentary filmmaker ties themselves up into artsy knots...the subject matter suffers!
When you have to question [too] many of the filmmakers decisions...the subject matter suffers!
All that fake noise - the scratches and dust - it all just gets in the way of the story. Why pretend the film is older than it is? It just doesn't make any sense whatsoever! Cassandro is in the here-&-now...facing the end of his incredibly agile career. He is a born entertainer...let him entertain, let him tell his story...that's what he's there for! But, no...Ms Losier has to meddle and spoil.
The editing is savage, all those eye-jarring jump-cuts. And, there are [too] many editorial decisions that should not have made it to the final cut...especially that telephone call when the filmmaker just wants to give Cassandro a kiss...because, he's having a bad day. C'mon!?! What's the first rule of documentary filmmaking? Do not get involved!!! Yes, we all know [artistic] 'rules' are there to be broken...but that is only applicable when a true visionary breaks them! If you ain't got the vision, don't break the rules!
Back in 2010, Cassandro was the subject of Michael Ramos Araizaga's 23 minute short film: Cassandro, el exótico - 8 years later, armed with the same title and no visible improvement, Ms Losier has delivered a film that celebrates her own [visionary] filmmaking prowess rather than adhering to the documentarist's job description...tell the story...without all the faux and frills.
Cassandro deserves [much] better than what he has been given.
Trailer...
The(ir) Blurb...
After 26 years of spinning dives and flying uppercuts in the ring, Cassandro, the star of the gender-bending cross-dressing Mexican wrestlers known as the Exoticos, is far from retiring. But with dozens of broken bones and metal pins in his body, he must now reinvent himself.