The Bullfighter and the Lady

Bullfighter and the Lady is a 1951 drama film directed and written by Budd Boetticher. Filmed on location in Mexico, the film focused on the realities of the dangerous sport of bullfighting. During production, one stunt man died. Boetticher, who had experience in bullfighting, used a semidocumentary approach in filming the sport and the lives of matadors. Chuck Regan , a young American film producer travels to Mexico, where he takes up bullfighting to impress a local beauty, Anita de la Vega . Manolo Estrada , an aging matador, reluctantly agrees to teach the brash, self-centered Regan.... Bullfighter earned Boetticher his only Academy Award nomination, for Best Story, which he shared with co-writer Ray Nazarro. Together with Seven Men from Now, Boetticher regarded Bullfighter as one of "the two best films I ever made." Like many of Boetticher's films, Bullfighter has not been released on DVD. For the film's American theatrical release, Bullfighter was cut to 87 minutes in order to share a double bill. The UCLA Film Archive recently restored the film to its full 124 minute length.
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