ARDOR | Movie Review

Less is more!

Much like Jake Gyllenhaal, Parker Posey, and a handful of others, Gael Garcia Bernal has maintained a lucrative acting career without caving into the sinful world of Hollywood blockbusters. Gracing us with more of the indie and/or foreign touch, Garcia Bernal is one of our best, underrated talents in front of the camera today. Performances in MOTORCYCLE DIARIES, NO, and ROSEWATER (for example) gives this man quite an edge, it’d be unfair to not call out the quality of good work this man has done through the years.

In his latest, ARDOR, Garcia Bernal dives into a more brutal-like role exposing him in a different light. One that displays him more like a wild west, jungle warrior, and less of a humble man seeking the love and/or answers to high-stake scenarios.

EL ARDOR is a rough, yet visually delicious adventure about a mysterious man (Gael Garcia Bernal) who emerges from the Argentinian rainforest to rescue a family from deadly land-grabbers seeking on stealing their farm.

The outcome wasn’t bad. Never did I expect this to be somewhat of a hero flick, in an Amazonian-cowboy-Rambo kind of way. Garcia Bernal’s smooth, yet grungy appearance and character in this places him on another level of badass. Not that he wasn’t one in his own right, but only HE can find time for some ass amidst a battle between land-grabbers and protecting the less fortunate. ARDOR starts off slow, along-side a bit of mumbling, but then takes a savage turn for the best as it poked its ruthless finger of wild justice all over any open wound both figurative and literal.

Also starring Alice Braga (I AM LEGEND, CITY OF GOD), ARDOR holds most of its strength within the mystery and violent build-up. Completely in Spanish, with English subtitles, the film opens on limited release Friday, July 17, 2015!

Dirty and different, ARDOR has and holds a solid place within this year’s list of films.

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Grade: B / Genre: Drama, Mystery / Rated: R / Run Time: 1:40

Starring: Gael Garcia Bernal, Alice Braga

Directed by: Pablo Fendrik