Ella Es el Matador (She Is the Matador)

Originally broadcast on PBS' POV series, this documentary by Gemma Cubero and Celeste Carrasco highlights a pair of women who successfully challenged the culture of state-sanctioned misogyny in Spanish bullfighting. Maripaz Vega and the Italian-born Eva Florencia have long fought against discrimination while attempting to pursue careers as matadors. A Spanish law dating from 1908 banned women from bullfighting, but while the restriction has been lifted, the discrimination persists, as promoters who don't like female matadors routinely prevent them from performing in the best arenas (strangely, this attitude is not prevalent in Portugal or in the Latin American countries where bullfights take place). Vega and Florencia speak at length about the physical and emotional challenges that bullfighting requires, and their passion is evident. Of course, those who are uncomfortable with the sport will find it hard to comprehend how the women are able to take pleasure in their work—particularly, the climactic action that requires the slaughter of the animals (“we all believe the bull is born to die in the ring,” Vega explains). But as an interesting portrait of the fight for gender equality in a typically male-dominated activity, this is recommended. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)