Assassination Tango
--David Brock
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"We enter this world alone. We leave it pretty much the same way. And in between, a dance we call life. The problem is, it takes two to tango . . . some dances you sit out. Others you change partners. The important thing is . . . you never stop dancing." —Chuck Fishman
There have been quite a few suspense films based on the art of violence. However, a film depicting the artistic grace of tango dancing captured by an assassination artist is a new (and frankly, odd) concept. Although it falls short of being a nail-biting thriller, Assassination Tango manages instead to become an engrossing illumination on "the dance we call life" — a convincing distraction from a man's stressful and turbulent world.
John Anderson (Robert Duvall) is an aging Brooklyn hitman, who, between gigs, spends time with his admirable hairdressing girlfriend (Kathy Baker) and cherishes her daughter (Katherine Micheaux Miller) much like she was his own. He is soon given an offer he can't refuse: immediately boarding a plane to Buenos Aires so he can quickly dispose of a retired Argentinean general. When the general is hospitalized, however, John has some time to kill until his target is released.
Soon John starts frequenting dance clubs, and is immediately entranced by Manuela (Luciana Pedraza — Duvall's real-life girlfriend). She teaches him how to tango, and he quickly becomes distracted from performing the task at hand. John still remembers, however, that he is devoted to his girlfriend and her daughter back home, who are clueless about what he is doing abroad.
Audiences, along with certain unnamed critics, who seem impatient with the film's plot may encounter a road block; they're missing the point. Sure, the plot drags; Anderson reexamining whom is he and what he stands for and what he desires. Aren't we supposed to feel the character's perspective, after all? Progress may be slow, but that's how such stories play out.
The slow plot is about more than a killer killing time; it involves a troubled man enduring a mid-life crisis, who is pondering whether his life is devoid of substance. Anderson needs something, anything, to make himself whole again. The beautiful art of tango dancing could not be a more fitting piece to John's disassembled puzzle.
The whole premise behind Assassination Tango is for a broken man to find fulfillment again in something as beautiful as dancing which becomes the catalyst for him to put the shattered pieces back together. Confusion diminishes and his confidence and self-purpose are restored.
The film is a successful effort, but in no means flawless. The story may seem underdeveloped, sometimes even hiding its intentions in the form of subtle, hard-to-discover hints. But overall, the concept and its filmmaking are brilliant, more than making up for its flaws.
Duvall may not excel as a triple threat (he also wrote and directed the film); but then again, he is not supposed to be — that would be far too predictable. Instead, Duvall and Pedraza throw caution to the wind and dance, turning Anderson's shattered puzzle into a stunning sight to behold.
(5 of 8)
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
anonymous980
anonymous980
posted 5/31/03 @ 3:48 AM CST
Robert Duvall and Luciana Pedraza suck! The movie is a piece of crap!
Jodi Abraham, Script Typist at Burbank Studios
Burbank, California
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