Bullfighter and the Lady (1951) directed by Budd Boetticher

[moira finnie]

Bullfighter and the Lady (1951), a film that was shown last night on TCM, (and is scheduled again on Feb. 7, 2008 at 2:15 AM ET), was quite engaging, despite the fact that my sympathies usually lie with the bull in question. Did anyone else see this?

Starring a very blonde Robert Stack, and Joy Page, (the young wife from Bulgaria helped by Rick in Casablanca), I thought that this movie really belonged to Gilbert Roland as a matador and Katy Jurado, in her American premiere as his magnificent wife. As Robert Osborne explained, the film shown on TCM was the director's 124 min. restored version, which had been cut down to 90 minutes by John Ford to ensure that John Wayne, the producer of this Republic film, could recoup his costs and make a profit by running the show more often in theatres.

According to Boetticher's memoirs, that editing job had cut the heart out of the movie's beautifully detailed Mexican sequences documenting the social and cultural atmosphere surrounding the toreo and the matador's techniques involved in dominating a bull. I'm so glad that these were restored, since these scenes, particularly those showing the Mexican children, the atmosphere of a tienta--where young bulls are tested for their "bravery" (in American terms, we'd tend to see it more as their "fierceness"), and the raucous as well as the refined people who are aficionados of this sport, were among the best in the film.

The movie could also be seen as a paean to masculinity, and the way that one man can express his love for another through their mutual devotion to an almost religious experience, comparable to that bond formed by those who go into battle together. As a matter of fact, the movie presents this aspect of bullfighting quite well, with only, I suppose, my 21st Century eyes seeing a sequence in a steam room as unnecessarily on the 'beefcake' side--though as a straight woman, it's sort of refreshing.

BTW, an amusing article from TCM on the background of the film's making, seen here, reveals that Mr. Roland, who took more than a little pride in his role both on and off the screen, became quite obnoxious to the director, Mr. Boetticher, (who had trained as a matador as a young man). You would never know it from what appears on screen, which is a warm portrait of a graceful athlete who performs his job with considerable dignity.

The weakest parts of the film may be those involving the obligatory love story between Stack and Page. The serene Ms. Page does well in establishing her aristocratic character's high standards and the appeal that her mysterious aloofness might have for an audacious young American. Unfortunately, Robert Stack, a graceful athlete who comports himself well in the film's training scenes, wasn't quite as successful in the intimate moments of the story, due to his one note hot-headedness. Another problem for me were those blond locks he sported to emphasize the contrast with the Mexican toreadors surrounding him. Apparently I wasn't the only observer who found this unsettling. When filming in Mexico City at the famous Plaza Mexico he was surrounded by real matadors in front of thousands of spectators. According to Stack, "Hey blondie! Throw us a kiss!" were among the more printable requests shouted at him as he strutted around the ring.

One more thing: it's always good to see the lovely Virginia Grey in anything, though her appearance here didn't offer her much of a challenge as an actress. I wondered if her character as a flirtatious but helpful married American, might have had more substance in the original story.

[Mr. Arkadin]

I saw it. As you mention, Roland and Jurado were magnificent, and it was worth watching for their performances alone. Stack has a penchant for woodenness, but he does very well here.

My biggest complaint was the last 15 mins of the show after Roland was gone and I was having to watch long distance bullring shots--too many of which were in slow motion. Instead of bringing the film to a climax, the whole thing seemed to bog down completely.

I will record it when it comes on again. For all its flaws, it's a very interesting work.