A Matador's Mistress

A Matador's Mistress tells the story of Manuel Rodríguez Sánchez, known as Manolete, the celebrated Spanish bullfighter of the 1940s. Reserved and austere away from the ring, he spends his life travelling between arenas and hotel rooms, devoting himself to his career. His meeting with the actress Lupe Sino changes that. Outspoken, independent and carrying a turbulent past, she draws him into a passionate relationship that clashes with the conventions of the time and becomes a public scandal. The film follows the pull between his life in the bullring and the love that gives him something beyond fame.

Menno Meyjes directed and wrote the film, his third feature after Max and Martian Child and before The Dinner and Silent Fear. Adrien Brody plays Manolete and Penélope Cruz plays Lupe Sino, with Nacho Aldeguer, Santiago Segura, Juan Echanove and Ann Mitchell in supporting roles. The production, mounted by Tarak Ben Ammar and Andrés Vicente Gómez, was a co-production among Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, the United States and France, with a reported budget of 28 million dollars.

Released in 2008 and running 92 minutes, the film drew a muted response. On IMDb it holds 5.7 out of 10 from roughly 3,400 votes, and on TMDB 5.9 out of 10 from about 127 votes, placing it modestly among the director's work.