Cassandro the Exotico!

An odd but not unappealing low-tech approach to the subject of lucha libre—Mexican professional wrestling—makes for a perfect match of style and subject in filmmaker Marie Losier’s loose, vignette-driven documentary, shot in a whatever-works guerrilla fashion. The focus is on Saúl Armendáriz, known as Cassandro, a middle-aged wrestler in Mexico’s loony but wildly popular masked wrestler tradition. But Cassandro does not wear a mask. As a gay man with a penchant for drag presentation, he dons heavy makeup and arrives at the ring in a poor man’s version of a Liberace coat with a super-long tail. Viewers witness some wrestling, where carefully rehearsed moves emphasize remarkable speed, agility, and strength, and observe that the community of wrestlers that includes Cassandro appears to be a tight one. Cassandro is seen coaching some younger guys in the ring, a warming act of mentorship, free of any bias among the students regarding his sexuality. Cassandro also discusses his rough childhood as a gay misfit, beaten by other kids but able to move past the hurt by watching operatic lucha libre on TV. A rough but loving portrait, this is recommended. Aud: C, P. (T. Keogh)