Cassandro

I sporten Lucha Libre, med strenge tradisjoner og forhåndsavtalte vinnere, stod exóticos aller nederst på rangstigen. De var umaskerte, hadde ofte feminine trekk, ble stort sett hatobjekt for de fleste, og var ment å tape alle sine kamper. Med Cassandro snudde Armendáriz helt om på posisjonen til denne «underdogen» i ringen. Og det som åpen homofil, i en veldig tydelig homofob machokultur. Han ble plutselig en vinner som alle elsket, og reiste etter sin nasjonale suksess verden rundt på arrangementer. 

Utenfor brølene i ringen møter vi i filmen en Cassandro som forsøker å balansere sine egne utfordringer mellom en mor han vil alt det beste for, og en hemmelig og gift elsker som ikke gjør livet så lett for lurchadoren.

Roger Ross Williams (født 1973) er en amerikansk produsent og regissør med lang erfaring innen dokumentarfilm. Den første kortfilmen hans, Music by Prudence (2010), vant Oscar for beste kortdokumentar. Siden har han regissert flere kritikerroste dokumentarfilmer, blant annet God Loves Uganda (2013), Life, Animated (2016) og The Apollo (2019). Hans nyeste spillefilm, Cassandro, hadde premiere på Sundance Film Festival i 2023.

In English

The Mexican superstar Gael García Bernal delivers a fantastic performance in the biographical feature film about the amateur wrestler Saúl Armendáriz, who turned the popular wrestling sport of Lucha Libre upside down.

In the sport Lucha Libre, with strict traditions and predetermined winners, exóticos were at the very bottom of the hierarchy. They were unmasked, often displayed feminine traits, hated by most, and were meant to lose all their matches. With his exótico character Cassandro, Armendáriz completely flipped the position of this underdog in the ring. And all of this as an openly gay man, in a very overtly homophobic macho culture. Suddenly, he became a beloved winner, traveling the world for events after his national success. 

Outside the roars of the ring we see a Cassandro trying to balance his own challenges between a mother he wants the best for, and a secret, married lover who doesn’t make life easy for the luchador.

Roger Ross Williams (born 1973) is an American producer and director with extensive experience in documentary filmmaking. His first short film, Music by Prudence (2010), won the Oscar for Best Documentary, Short Subjects. Since then, he has directed several critically acclaimed documentary films, including God Loves Uganda (2013), Life, Animated (2016), and The Apollo (2019). His latest fiction film, Cassandro, premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2023.