Gael García Bernal is a Luchadore in Sensational 'Cassandro' Trailer

Gael García Bernal is a Luchadore in Sensational ‘Cassandro’ Trailer

by Alex Billington
August 22, 2023
Source: YouTube

“You’re pushing things. The other wrestlers think you’re getting too big.” Let’s goooo Cassandro!! Amazon’s Prime Video has revealed the first official trailer for a film titled Cassandro, which originally premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. I watched this and loved it, still on my Best of 2023 list. It really won me over, and got me all emotional, too. Oscar-winning doc filmmaker Roger Ross Williams (Life, Animated) makes his fiction directorial debut with the real-life tale of Cassandro, the “Liberace of lucha libre,” crafting an “engaging origin story” for an outsider turned unlikely superstar. Gael García Bernal embodies the two distinct sides of Saúl, capturing both his feelings of otherness and the boisterous ring persona who embraces & revels in his difference. The true story of Cassandro, the ”exotico” character of Saúl Armendáriz, a gay wrestler from El Paso. The full cast includes Roberta Colindrez, Raúl Castillo, Perla De La Rosa, Joaquín Cosio, Bad Bunny, and the real “Gigantico” lucha from Mexico. What a delightful trailer – really capturing the spirit of this. I really, really adore this film – worth the time to watch.

Here’s the first official trailer (+ poster) for Roger Ross Williams’ Cassandro, direct from YouTube:

From Sundance: “In the lucha libre wrestling scene of Juárez, Mexico, gay luchador Saúl is tired of playing El Topo, a nondescript, masked runt who always loses his matches. He wants to be a star. His fierce new trainer, Sabrina, suggests he develop an exótico character — an unmasked, stereotypically effeminate role audiences love to hate. But exóticos never get to win. All that changes when Saúl debuts the flamboyant and powerful Cassandro, who captures the crowd’s attention and affection. But how will Cassandro’s ascent affect Saúl’s relationship with his mother — still pining away for his unavailable father — and with Gerardo, Saúl’s secret lover?” Cassandro is directed by acclaimed, Oscar-winning filmmaker Roger Ross Williams, making his first narrative feature after directing the documentary films God Loves Uganda, Life Animated, The Apollo, and Love to Love You Donna Summer, plus work on “The 1619 Project” and “The Innocence Files” series. The screenplay is written by David Teague and Roger Ross Williams. This initially premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. Prime Video will debut Cassandro in select US theaters on September 15th, 2023, and streaming on Prime Video starting September 22nd this fall. Any good?