On the way out of The Other Americans, the new drama written by and starring John Leguizamo, I overheard a man about my age talking to his friend as they shuffled up the aisle. "If that isn't my family," he said, trailing off. He looked a little shell-shocked. I don't know what he thought of the play as a play, but he had seen something of his own experience on stage and it had moved him.
For anyone looking for an ethical statement on bullfighting, this is not that film. Composed primarily of a series of corrida at which Peruvian star matador Andres Roca Rey performs, this is an extremely tough watch for those with any kind of sympathy for animal rights. Director Albert Serra lauded for his 2022 thriller Pacifiction is not especially interested in the lives of the bulls, who all die desultory deaths, depicted with horrible intimacy here.