In this biopic, Gael Garcia Bernal (Y Tu Mamá También, The Motorcycle Diaries) portrays Saúl Armendáriz, an American-born Mexican luchador. Born in 1970 in El Paso, Texas, Saúl began his career in the flamboyant sport of professional wrestling known as lucha libre. Just across the border in Juárez, he performs as a character named El Topo. Saúl wears a mask, and his purpose is to lose matches. However, things change when he meets Sabrina (Roberta Colindrez). She’s a trainer and a wrestler in her own right. Impressed by his skills, she agrees to take Saúl on as an apprentice. She encourages him to abandon his old character and assume a new role.
Saúl would now perform under the name Cassandro as an exótico, a male wrestler who performs in drag. These are fighters who adopt feminine behavior and dress. They had always been a traditional part of the sport. Straight men (or those who asserted they were) presented them as caricatures meant to be an object of ridicule. In this realm, audiences responded to the exótico as the villain destined to lose. Cassandro was about to change that. Saúl Armendáriz was different because he was gay and had no intention of playing the fool.
The mask was coming off, literally and figuratively, in this fascinating biography. Casasdro is lovingly supported at home by his single mom. Yocasta (Perla De La Rosa) is a woman fiercely protective of her son. In his professional life, there’s his trainer, the aforementioned Sabrina (Roberta Colindrez), Lorenzo, an ambitious promoter (Joaquín Cosío), and Felipe (Bad Bunny), the assistant Lorenzo assigns to him. Casasdro’s affair with wrestler El Comandante (Raúl Castillo), who happens to be married, complicates both of their lives. Everything culminates in the opportunity of a lifetime in Mexico City when Casasdro faces off against the legendary El Hijo del Santo, playing himself.
An underdog overcomes adversity to triumph against the odds. It’s a cliche because it works. Yet, this is primarily an uplifting tale with surpringly little hardship. Casasdro’s facile ability to transform an audience hurling homophobic slurs at him one moment into an adoring crowd that proudly cheers for his win the next, is not rendered entirely clear. This is documentary director Roger Ross Williams’ (Life Animated, Love to Love You Donna Summer) first narrative feature. Many of the developments seem relatively effortless.
Cassandro still manages to entertain. Director of Photography Matias Penachino (Time Share) gives the scenes visual style, and an evocative score from Marcelo Zarvos (Wonder, Fences) elevates the production. But most of all, Cassandro is aided by an outstanding performance by Gael García Bernal in the titular part. He radiates charisma and humanity in an achievement that simultaneously exudes vulnerability and strength. The road to success would be challenging, but through hard work, determination, and perhaps a bit of luck, Cassandro beat the odds.
10-03-23