Each year, the slow-paced lifestyle on Mexico’s largest desert in Baja…
The Apizaco Shaman
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The stormy life of Mexican bullfighter Rodolfo Rodríguez González and his alter ego "THE PANA." Of very humble origin, he worked as a baker, gravedigger, bundles loader, and seller of jellies, before becoming a bullfighter.
A man on the conquest of his dreams and the glory that slips between his hands because of mental health issues: bipolarity, schizophrenia, narcissism, and an infernal addiction to alcohol.
Citation
Main credits
Lebrija, Rodrigo (filmmaker)
Other credits
Cinematography, Rodrigo Lebrija; editing, Pedro Garcia and Rodrigo Lebrija; music, Xavier Asali.
Distributor subjects
Culture + Identity; Latin American Studies; Mental Health; Biography; Health + Aging; Religion + Spirituality; SociologyKeywords
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In bullfighting, we see a character
dressed like a priest
00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:32.000
and relying on his intelligence
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to fight a beast
that only wants to kill him.
00:00:36.000 --> 00:00:39.000
But, above all,
it's the only way for me
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to express the internal drama
I am going through.
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It's this spirituality that has taken
bullfighters to the highest levels.
00:00:52.000 --> 00:00:56.000
In this sense, the bullfighting festival
becomes a ritual, a liturgy.
00:00:57.000 --> 00:00:59.000
It's an encounter till death.
00:00:59.000 --> 00:01:02.000
If one of them doesn't have
the capacity to kill,
00:01:03.000 --> 00:01:07.000
then the emotions
are reduced to its minimum.
00:01:08.000 --> 00:01:10.000
If there's no danger,
there's no emotion.
00:01:10.000 --> 00:01:12.000
It's a joke. They even fight
the bull being drunk.
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The other day, "El Pana" fought
being drunk and won.
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It was a blunted bull, of course.
00:01:25.000 --> 00:01:28.000
They're afraid of big bulls,
00:01:29.000 --> 00:01:32.000
because big bulls
put you in your place.
00:01:32.000 --> 00:01:35.000
Bullfighters are an endangered race
on the brink of extinction.
00:01:35.000 --> 00:01:41.000
YEAR 1929. BULLRING
00:03:00.000 --> 00:03:03.000
What an ugly gore.
What an ugly gore, my God!
00:03:11.000 --> 00:03:13.000
Over the winnings of love,
00:03:13.000 --> 00:03:16.000
the soul will fly home
to the world of ideas,
00:03:16.000 --> 00:03:20.000
where it'll be freed
from the jail of the body. Plato.
00:03:24.000 --> 00:03:26.000
He's my friend, my brother.
00:03:26.000 --> 00:03:31.000
He has resentment for the rich,
for society.
00:03:32.000 --> 00:03:36.000
Why? Because it's been very tough for him
since he was born.
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Ever since he was born.
00:03:39.000 --> 00:03:42.000
If "El Pana", as strong as he is,
00:03:43.000 --> 00:03:47.000
is able to overcome
such terrible situation,
00:03:47.000 --> 00:03:51.000
he should be remembered
almost like a saint.
00:03:51.000 --> 00:03:53.000
He's a man with lots of qualities,
00:03:53.000 --> 00:03:55.000
but also with a lot of weaknesses.
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There is a duality
between Rodolfo, the human being,
00:03:59.000 --> 00:04:02.000
and "El Pana", the mystic bullfighter.
00:04:02.000 --> 00:04:07.000
He feels like a hero, like a king,
and like trash at the same time.
00:04:07.000 --> 00:04:10.000
He's an arrogant, conceited jerk.
00:04:10.000 --> 00:04:12.000
"El Pana" breaks the mold,
00:04:12.000 --> 00:04:15.000
considering we live in a world
of superficial people.
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In equestrian terms,
he has no reins.
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He exaggerates.
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He's a genius, he's nuts.
00:04:21.000 --> 00:04:22.000
He is...
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very surrealistic, the fucking "Pana".
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Surrealistic, or idealist,
or extremely crazy.
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More than crazy
I think he's a lunatic.
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And the difference between being crazy
and being a lunatic,
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is that lunatics
have some lucid moments.
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These are tormented people,
which is not the same as being crazy.
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THE MEXICAN SHAMAN
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Rodolfo, I have noticed
that you keep referring
00:06:41.000 --> 00:06:44.000
to the story of "El Pana" repeatedly.
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Where does Rodolfo stand?
Tell me about Rodolfo.
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Rodolfo is...
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He is...
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...we could say a bland man,
00:07:04.000 --> 00:07:09.000
a mediocre, someone who never
reached his potential...
00:07:10.000 --> 00:07:15.000
...an apprentice of everything
and a professional at nothing.
00:07:17.000 --> 00:07:20.000
He's a meaningless bullfighter,
00:07:21.000 --> 00:07:23.000
a bullfighter who...
00:07:26.000 --> 00:07:28.000
...who speaks a couple of languages,
00:07:30.000 --> 00:07:32.000
a bullfighter who...
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In short, he's a humane bullfighter
00:07:38.000 --> 00:07:40.000
who has not transcended.
00:07:41.000 --> 00:07:46.000
So Rodolfo Rodríguez, "El Pana",
despite his mediocrity
00:07:47.000 --> 00:07:48.000
and having to fight...
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...that obscure being
that Rodolfo is,
00:07:55.000 --> 00:08:00.000
was able to create
an outstanding,
00:08:00.000 --> 00:08:04.000
a charismatic,
00:08:05.000 --> 00:08:08.000
a splendid,
a spectacular character,
00:08:09.000 --> 00:08:11.000
a phenomenon
in the bullfighting world.
00:08:11.000 --> 00:08:18.000
This is the bullfighter that
Rodolfo Rodríguez has created: "El Pana",
00:08:18.000 --> 00:08:21.000
due to his mediocracy
00:08:21.000 --> 00:08:26.000
and being an anodyne character.
00:08:27.000 --> 00:08:31.000
So, "El Pana" is the one
who's really worth it.
00:09:25.000 --> 00:09:26.000
Come on!
00:09:32.000 --> 00:09:35.000
Almost there, almost there.
00:09:35.000 --> 00:09:36.000
One, two, three.
00:09:37.000 --> 00:09:38.000
Kick.
00:09:41.000 --> 00:09:42.000
There you go.
00:09:57.000 --> 00:09:58.000
There you go.
00:10:00.000 --> 00:10:01.000
Good luck.
00:10:23.000 --> 00:10:25.000
He's a 56 year old Mexican.
00:10:27.000 --> 00:10:30.000
Legend says
he's been seven times in jail
00:10:31.000 --> 00:10:34.000
and that he knows
what it's like to run away
00:10:34.000 --> 00:10:38.000
from the bull keeper's bullets.
00:10:39.000 --> 00:10:42.000
He is Rodolfo Rodriguez, "El Pana",
00:10:43.000 --> 00:10:47.000
a different bullfighter,
extravagant and bohemian.
00:10:48.000 --> 00:10:50.000
The last romantic bullfighter.
00:10:50.000 --> 00:10:52.000
From partying to bullfighting.
Yes, sir.
00:10:52.000 --> 00:10:55.000
Do you feel you are
the last romantic?
00:10:55.000 --> 00:10:58.000
Yes, because when "El Pana" retires,
00:10:58.000 --> 00:11:02.000
it'll be like finishing
a book on romanticism.
00:11:07.000 --> 00:11:09.000
It's a pleasure
seeing you again, master.
00:11:18.000 --> 00:11:20.000
Good luck, "Pana"!
00:11:23.000 --> 00:11:26.000
Good luck, "Pana"!
00:11:30.000 --> 00:11:31.000
Good luck!
00:11:31.000 --> 00:11:35.000
There's a big crowd
today at Plaza Mexico.
00:11:35.000 --> 00:11:39.000
"El Pana" arrives on his typical wagon
with a beautiful lady elegantly dressed.
00:11:39.000 --> 00:11:43.000
Another extravagance
of Rodolfo Rodriguez, "El Pana",
00:11:43.000 --> 00:11:46.000
the oldest bullfighter to have fought
at Plaza Mexico.
00:11:47.000 --> 00:11:52.000
And here he is again,
on the last verge of his career.
00:11:52.000 --> 00:11:54.000
Long live "El Pana"!
00:12:00.000 --> 00:12:02.000
Rodolfo Rodriguez
and his alter ego, "El Pana",
00:12:02.000 --> 00:12:04.000
is today in Plaza Mexico.
00:12:04.000 --> 00:12:10.000
He's a multi faced character
hard to describe, polyhedral.
00:12:11.000 --> 00:12:13.000
There he is,
talking with his assistant.
00:12:14.000 --> 00:12:16.000
The bull's size is irreproachable.
00:12:17.000 --> 00:12:20.000
Let's see if the witchery pops up
00:12:20.000 --> 00:12:24.000
to calm this impatient crowd.
00:12:25.000 --> 00:12:31.000
Well, it seems that the crowd
is not with the shaman today.
00:12:33.000 --> 00:12:35.000
The booing is totally unfair,
00:12:36.000 --> 00:12:41.000
because the crowd isn't observing
the bull's performing conditions
00:12:41.000 --> 00:12:44.000
and it's taking it out
on the bullfighter.
00:12:45.000 --> 00:12:50.000
A resentment from the crowd
to a veteran bullfighter.
00:12:51.000 --> 00:12:54.000
I would say an older person
has a lot of merit
00:12:54.000 --> 00:12:57.000
to stand in front of a bull like that,
00:12:57.000 --> 00:13:00.000
but the crowd
doesn't seem to care about that.
00:13:00.000 --> 00:13:03.000
You're too old!
00:13:03.000 --> 00:13:07.000
The crowd doesn't even
respect the usual silence,
00:13:07.000 --> 00:13:12.000
customary at the time of death.
00:13:19.000 --> 00:13:25.000
"El Pana's" life has always
been surrounded by controversy,
00:13:25.000 --> 00:13:26.000
contempt and humiliation.
00:13:27.000 --> 00:13:33.000
Let's hope this failure does not affect
his spirit and make him drink again.
00:13:33.000 --> 00:13:36.000
"Pana", you motherfucker!
00:13:49.000 --> 00:13:51.000
Things didn't work out today.
00:13:52.000 --> 00:13:53.000
The bull didn't perform.
00:13:55.000 --> 00:14:00.000
In past years, I would have thought
that God turned his back on me,
00:14:01.000 --> 00:14:06.000
so against that God, against life
and against myself,
00:14:07.000 --> 00:14:09.000
I'd be acquiring the substance.
00:14:09.000 --> 00:14:12.000
No, thank God
everything's changed.
00:14:13.000 --> 00:14:16.000
My mother is at ease at home,
00:14:17.000 --> 00:14:19.000
because after God, my mother.
00:14:21.000 --> 00:14:24.000
My family is at ease,
my collaborators are at ease,
00:14:24.000 --> 00:14:26.000
all my people are at ease,
00:14:27.000 --> 00:14:29.000
and we'll keep it that way.
00:15:58.000 --> 00:16:03.000
When you love nature,
you're automatically in touch with God,
00:16:04.000 --> 00:16:07.000
because even if you have a small garden
or a small orchard,
00:16:08.000 --> 00:16:11.000
it's a piece of heaven.
00:16:11.000 --> 00:16:14.000
Same goes for a human being,
a worm or a bee,
00:16:15.000 --> 00:16:18.000
they are microorganisms
created by God.
00:16:18.000 --> 00:16:20.000
So you must love them.
00:16:20.000 --> 00:16:25.000
Only sensible people understand this.
Insensible people don't understand it.
00:16:25.000 --> 00:16:27.000
Life goes by unnoticed for them.
00:16:30.000 --> 00:16:34.000
All this land belong to my daughter,
it's not mine.
00:16:36.000 --> 00:16:39.000
Seems as if life was in debt with me
and it's paying me now.
00:16:40.000 --> 00:16:45.000
My marriage was a failure,
00:16:45.000 --> 00:16:46.000
my marriage with my ex,
00:16:47.000 --> 00:16:50.000
because gringos don't like...
00:16:53.000 --> 00:16:55.000
...Mexican food.
00:16:55.000 --> 00:16:58.000
And frankly, what they call...
00:17:01.000 --> 00:17:04.000
..."the American way of living",
doesn't appeal to me.
00:17:05.000 --> 00:17:09.000
But I became very lonely,
and to relieve my loneliness,
00:17:10.000 --> 00:17:12.000
I turned to the substance.
00:17:13.000 --> 00:17:15.000
I believe to be a blessed person
00:17:16.000 --> 00:17:20.000
grasped on to that higher power,
on to my father God's arm.
00:17:20.000 --> 00:17:23.000
Where I come from
there is no room for arrogance,
00:17:24.000 --> 00:17:28.000
for pride, for vanity. No.
00:17:31.000 --> 00:17:34.000
Since I turned my life over
to that higher power,
00:17:34.000 --> 00:17:37.000
y let God guide my steps.
00:17:37.000 --> 00:17:39.000
I, like Christ,
have descended to hell.
00:17:42.000 --> 00:17:47.000
My mother was afraid
of this little ranch,
00:17:47.000 --> 00:17:52.000
because it used to be my refuge
for my alcoholism,
00:17:52.000 --> 00:17:55.000
depravation and aberrant acts.
00:17:55.000 --> 00:17:59.000
I never learned how to drink,
I drank like a bastard.
00:17:59.000 --> 00:18:04.000
I've never met an addict that can smile,
that can smile at life.
00:18:06.000 --> 00:18:09.000
It's a sad, monotonous, boring life.
00:18:10.000 --> 00:18:13.000
You are practically a zombie.
You don't live, you vegetate.
00:18:13.000 --> 00:18:15.000
I can't complain about life.
00:18:15.000 --> 00:18:17.000
I can't complain
when there are people worst off.
00:18:18.000 --> 00:18:20.000
My mother is at ease now,
00:18:20.000 --> 00:18:26.000
because no matter
which party I go to,
00:18:27.000 --> 00:18:30.000
she knows I won't drink.
00:18:31.000 --> 00:18:33.000
Back in the days,
00:18:33.000 --> 00:18:35.000
when I started to dress up
and behave very "Pana",
00:18:37.000 --> 00:18:38.000
she started crying.
00:18:38.000 --> 00:18:40.000
"Why are you crying, mother?"
00:18:40.000 --> 00:18:42.000
"Because, son,
I know how this will end up."
00:18:42.000 --> 00:18:49.000
Not anymore. My mother's peace of mind
is worth everything.
00:18:49.000 --> 00:18:52.000
All I've wanted to achieve in life
has been for her.
00:18:54.000 --> 00:18:57.000
I am in celibacy, like priests.
00:18:57.000 --> 00:19:00.000
Sex is now in standby.
00:19:02.000 --> 00:19:07.000
But if a fly falls, I do eat it,
but I have become an "ace."
00:19:07.000 --> 00:19:13.000
I make my web like a spider
and watch the flies fall in.
00:19:13.000 --> 00:19:15.000
I don't chase them anymore,
00:19:15.000 --> 00:19:19.000
because when I do,
I have no idea what to do with them.
00:19:31.000 --> 00:19:33.000
Well, I have to take care of him.
00:19:35.000 --> 00:19:37.000
Whom if not me? I'm his mother.
00:19:39.000 --> 00:19:42.000
When he starts drinking hard...
00:19:44.000 --> 00:19:46.000
...he looks terrible.
00:19:47.000 --> 00:19:53.000
When we saw there was no way
to stop him, we had to commit him
00:19:54.000 --> 00:19:56.000
and he left crying like a little boy.
00:19:59.000 --> 00:20:01.000
But there was no other choice.
00:20:03.000 --> 00:20:05.000
After such hell,
what makes you drink again?
00:20:07.000 --> 00:20:11.000
I really don't know.
I really don't know.
00:20:11.000 --> 00:20:18.000
What I do know
is that drinking means a debacle,
00:20:19.000 --> 00:20:24.000
it means the self-destruction
of the human being.
00:20:25.000 --> 00:20:28.000
Man, the stories I have
from being an alcoholic!
00:20:30.000 --> 00:20:32.000
What did your mother say to you?
00:20:32.000 --> 00:20:35.000
Rodolfo, stand up,
you're going to get a pain.
00:20:36.000 --> 00:20:42.000
My poor mother would lift me up
from a puddle of piss.
00:20:43.000 --> 00:20:47.000
I'd be on my feet
and my mother on her knees,
00:20:48.000 --> 00:20:51.000
crying, holding on to my feet
and saying,
00:20:52.000 --> 00:20:57.000
"Rodolfo, what can I do
to make you stop drinking?
00:20:57.000 --> 00:21:01.000
Tell me what I need to do
for you to stop drinking."
00:21:02.000 --> 00:21:06.000
And I'd say, "Mom, please stand up,
don't make a scene.
00:21:07.000 --> 00:21:12.000
It kills me seeing you like this.
I don't want to see you like this.
00:21:12.000 --> 00:21:15.000
Mother, please stand up."
00:21:16.000 --> 00:21:19.000
Nothing has worked,
nothing has worked.
00:21:20.000 --> 00:21:22.000
Nothing has worked.
00:21:25.000 --> 00:21:29.000
It's incredible how many times
I have fallen drunk to the floor.
00:21:32.000 --> 00:21:37.000
Those joints where "Pana" has gone
to recover are literally hell.
00:21:38.000 --> 00:21:40.000
Worse than jails.
00:21:40.000 --> 00:21:43.000
In those places,
the human being is worth nothing.
00:21:43.000 --> 00:21:46.000
Dignity is worth nothing
00:21:46.000 --> 00:21:53.000
in those dungeons, worthless places
where "Pana" has been.
00:21:55.000 --> 00:22:00.000
To talk about what darkness is
to Rodolfo Rodriguez
00:22:01.000 --> 00:22:05.000
is very hard,
you have to experience it.
00:22:06.000 --> 00:22:13.000
Only those who have been there
know what it's really like
00:22:13.000 --> 00:22:16.000
to experience the darkness
and the suffering.
00:22:16.000 --> 00:22:19.000
Don't be surprised if one day,
00:22:19.000 --> 00:22:23.000
"El Pana" grabs a gun
and ends the nightmare.
00:22:24.000 --> 00:22:30.000
But I would like that to happen
when "El Pana" is finished,
00:22:30.000 --> 00:22:34.000
after demonstrating that everything
can be done in front of a bull.
00:22:38.000 --> 00:22:39.000
I've dealt with
the most ferocious bulls,
00:22:39.000 --> 00:22:44.000
but I haven't been able to tame
00:22:44.000 --> 00:22:46.000
the bull that comes
in a bottle of brandy.
00:22:47.000 --> 00:22:51.000
To the point where I have to be committed
for rehab,
00:22:51.000 --> 00:22:56.000
and then they take me out to fight,
but once I'm sober.
00:22:58.000 --> 00:23:00.000
It's sad to say it,
but that's the way it is.
00:23:05.000 --> 00:23:08.000
REHABILITATION CENTER FOR ALCOHOLICS
AND DRUG ADDICTS LA CONCEPCION
00:23:24.000 --> 00:23:27.000
You say you're happy
because you're sober?
00:23:28.000 --> 00:23:29.000
Definitely.
00:23:29.000 --> 00:23:33.000
I'm happy when I get an ovation,
when I succeed
00:23:34.000 --> 00:23:39.000
and when I get all those good things
life gives me from being a bullfighter.
00:23:41.000 --> 00:23:46.000
As a person I haven't had
great moments of happiness.
00:23:46.000 --> 00:23:48.000
I AM A NEW DAWN
00:23:48.000 --> 00:23:52.000
I don't think
God makes bad human beings,
00:23:53.000 --> 00:23:58.000
but the moment
I take a drink to my mouth,
00:23:58.000 --> 00:24:01.000
I don't care about my family,
about society,
00:24:01.000 --> 00:24:03.000
about relationships,
about nothing.
00:24:03.000 --> 00:24:07.000
I become a beast,
I can't think anymore.
00:24:08.000 --> 00:24:10.000
I'm no longer me as a person.
00:24:10.000 --> 00:24:14.000
I become a monster
all thanks to the first drink.
00:24:16.000 --> 00:24:18.000
To stand out as a bullfighter,
00:24:18.000 --> 00:24:21.000
you have to look like one
and live like one.
00:24:22.000 --> 00:24:26.000
"El Pana" is in rehab right now,
but he's thinking about bullfighting.
00:25:02.000 --> 00:25:04.000
I cry a lot
00:25:04.000 --> 00:25:07.000
and repent for all my excesses,
00:25:08.000 --> 00:25:12.000
so when I'm here
I get in touch with God.
00:25:13.000 --> 00:25:15.000
I talk a lot with Him,
00:25:16.000 --> 00:25:18.000
and he's always willing to listen.
00:25:20.000 --> 00:25:23.000
What I'm afraid of
and what I'm really sad about
00:25:26.000 --> 00:25:30.000
is that my life, as a bullfighter,
might not end in the ring,
00:25:30.000 --> 00:25:36.000
but run over by a garbage truck
for being drunk.
00:26:04.000 --> 00:26:06.000
THE BULLFIGHTER'S CORNER
00:26:14.000 --> 00:26:16.000
What's the name of this town?
00:26:16.000 --> 00:26:19.000
Shashu... Shashushi...
I have no idea.
00:26:20.000 --> 00:26:23.000
No idea, but we can ask.
00:26:24.000 --> 00:26:27.000
- What's the name of this town, Luis?
- Doxey.
00:26:27.000 --> 00:26:28.000
- How?
- Doxey.
00:26:29.000 --> 00:26:30.000
Doxey.
00:26:31.000 --> 00:26:33.000
What does it mean?
00:26:34.000 --> 00:26:35.000
Doxey.
00:26:37.000 --> 00:26:41.000
Let's go to the canteen
and I'll tell you all about my life.
00:26:43.000 --> 00:26:45.000
When drunk or sleeping,
I forget my misery.
00:26:46.000 --> 00:26:48.000
What's your opinion
on Mexico's situation?
00:26:48.000 --> 00:26:53.000
It's fucking hell. They're not satisfied
with just killing people,
00:26:53.000 --> 00:26:57.000
they behead them, chop their arms,
so many ugly things...
00:26:58.000 --> 00:27:01.000
The President bragging
about ending violence,
00:27:02.000 --> 00:27:04.000
he only made it worse.
00:27:05.000 --> 00:27:09.000
Everybody says, "If you can't fight
the enemy, join him."
00:27:09.000 --> 00:27:11.000
They should just join forces
and call it game over.
00:27:11.000 --> 00:27:13.000
They even reward you.
00:27:13.000 --> 00:27:16.000
If you hang out with that kind of people
you get rewarded,
00:27:17.000 --> 00:27:21.000
just like they have rewarded
the police department.
00:27:22.000 --> 00:27:25.000
Even the army gets rewarded,
just look at them.
00:27:25.000 --> 00:27:28.000
Easy remedy,
that's what they have to do.
00:27:28.000 --> 00:27:32.000
They say we have the richest man
in the world,
00:27:32.000 --> 00:27:37.000
but there are millions of people
who can't buy beans or tortillas.
00:27:37.000 --> 00:27:40.000
So nice to have the richest man
in the world.
00:27:40.000 --> 00:27:46.000
It's vulgar, it's like a bad joke,
but we're in Mexico.
00:27:47.000 --> 00:27:50.000
Here, you either get used to it,
or else...
00:29:38.000 --> 00:29:40.000
Cigarettes, chocolates!
00:29:41.000 --> 00:29:43.000
NOVEMBER 1, 4:30 P.M.
00:29:43.000 --> 00:29:47.000
Due to health issues,
bullfighter Rodolfo Rodriguez, "El Pana",
00:29:47.000 --> 00:29:49.000
will not be able to perform.
00:29:50.000 --> 00:29:52.000
Guys, wasn't "El Pana"
going to fight today?
00:29:53.000 --> 00:29:56.000
Yes, but he had an accident.
00:29:58.000 --> 00:30:00.000
We don't know where he is.
00:30:00.000 --> 00:30:01.000
Health issues.
00:30:03.000 --> 00:30:04.000
This and that, and health.
00:30:04.000 --> 00:30:06.000
I don't know, so I heard.
00:30:07.000 --> 00:30:10.000
I think he is ill.
00:30:11.000 --> 00:30:14.000
He was ill, now he's fine,
but he wants to finish his therapy.
00:30:14.000 --> 00:30:17.000
Do you know why "El Pana"
is not fighting?
00:30:17.000 --> 00:30:20.000
- No, he is secluded.
- He's drunk.
00:30:23.000 --> 00:30:26.000
- What did he drink?
- Who knows. Fuck you!
00:31:46.000 --> 00:31:47.000
- Wasn't "El Pana" going to fight today?
- Yes.
00:31:48.000 --> 00:31:49.000
And what happened?
00:31:49.000 --> 00:31:53.000
- What happened, Lucero?
- He's paying the consequences.
00:31:53.000 --> 00:31:54.000
- He's ill.
- Is he?
00:31:54.000 --> 00:31:56.000
He's got diarrhea!
00:31:57.000 --> 00:32:00.000
- You guys cheer for "El Pana"?
- Of course.
00:32:00.000 --> 00:32:01.000
He's our compadre.
00:32:01.000 --> 00:32:05.000
- Is it true what they say about "Pana"?
- That he's gay? Who knows?
00:32:06.000 --> 00:32:08.000
You're messing with Apizaco's relic.
00:32:08.000 --> 00:32:11.000
The great shaman
from Santa Ranita Ruiloba.
00:32:11.000 --> 00:32:12.000
That's good!
00:32:13.000 --> 00:32:16.000
- Honestly, why didn't "El Pana" show up?
- I have no idea.
00:32:17.000 --> 00:32:19.000
- Do you think "El Pana" is an idol?
- I don't know what to say.
00:32:20.000 --> 00:32:22.000
- What does he mean to you?
- He's only a bullfighter.
00:32:33.000 --> 00:32:35.000
Did you ever perform drunk?
00:32:36.000 --> 00:32:39.000
Not only that,
00:32:39.000 --> 00:32:43.000
many times I couldn't perform
because I was completely wasted.
00:32:44.000 --> 00:32:45.000
"Pana", what do you have that's crazy?
00:32:47.000 --> 00:32:49.000
A girl that plays with the other.
00:32:52.000 --> 00:32:54.000
What's so genius about you?
00:32:54.000 --> 00:32:57.000
My inspiration.
00:33:00.000 --> 00:33:03.000
- Are you romantic?
- I am completely romantic.
00:33:03.000 --> 00:33:06.000
He doesn't know how to drink,
how to eat,
00:33:08.000 --> 00:33:09.000
but he knows how to bullfight.
00:33:27.000 --> 00:33:30.000
From the heaven of Apizaco
00:33:31.000 --> 00:33:34.000
A star fell down
00:33:35.000 --> 00:33:38.000
Rodolfo Rodriguez
00:33:39.000 --> 00:33:43.000
Was his name
And bullfighting his hobby
00:33:44.000 --> 00:33:48.000
Among his red cape and hat
00:33:48.000 --> 00:33:52.000
Among cigars,
Wagons and carnations
00:33:53.000 --> 00:33:56.000
The crowd will remember you
00:33:57.000 --> 00:34:01.000
Because you've showed
All your potential
00:34:02.000 --> 00:34:05.000
Tlaxcalan neighbor
00:34:06.000 --> 00:34:10.000
Wonderful player of bullfighting
00:34:11.000 --> 00:34:14.000
Drawing with your cape
00:34:14.000 --> 00:34:18.000
All those beautiful diverse passes
00:34:19.000 --> 00:34:23.000
In the amazing bullrings
00:34:23.000 --> 00:34:26.000
Full of Mexican traditional colors
00:34:28.000 --> 00:34:32.000
All is painted by your braveness
00:34:33.000 --> 00:34:37.000
That will make you immortal
00:35:00.000 --> 00:35:02.000
I believe he has improved his race,
00:35:02.000 --> 00:35:06.000
because his father killed people
and "El Pana" only kills bulls.
00:35:07.000 --> 00:35:11.000
I asked his mother once
who exactly was his father.
00:35:13.000 --> 00:35:15.000
She told me he was a gunman
00:35:17.000 --> 00:35:19.000
who was murdered in Cuernavaca.
00:35:20.000 --> 00:35:26.000
And she said, "I am glad they killed him
because he was very mean to me."
00:35:27.000 --> 00:35:31.000
This is my father's family:
Guadalupe Rodriguez Ramos,
00:35:32.000 --> 00:35:34.000
my grandparents, uncle Rutilo,
00:35:34.000 --> 00:35:38.000
uncle Bullevaldo, uncle Roberto,
00:35:38.000 --> 00:35:40.000
and Erasto,
who was bloodthirsty.
00:35:40.000 --> 00:35:42.000
They were President Avila Camacho's
hitmen.
00:35:42.000 --> 00:35:44.000
They all had horrible deaths.
00:35:45.000 --> 00:35:47.000
He who kills by the sword,
dies by the sword.
00:35:49.000 --> 00:35:52.000
So "Pana's" life has been similar
00:35:52.000 --> 00:35:55.000
to the life of millions of kids
in this country.
00:35:55.000 --> 00:35:58.000
I started out
delivering bread in my bicycle
00:35:58.000 --> 00:36:01.000
with a basket on my head.
00:36:02.000 --> 00:36:07.000
Then I became the baker's assistant.
00:36:07.000 --> 00:36:09.000
Then I became official
00:36:10.000 --> 00:36:16.000
and made my way up the ladder
00:36:17.000 --> 00:36:19.000
until I became a baker myself.
00:36:20.000 --> 00:36:23.000
And since I was tall,
with a good looking figure,
00:36:23.000 --> 00:36:26.000
my baking teacher,
Augustin Flores Minutito,
00:36:27.000 --> 00:36:30.000
may he rest in peace,
convinced me the motherfucker.
00:36:31.000 --> 00:36:34.000
He told me I had a bullfighter's body
00:36:34.000 --> 00:36:36.000
and that bullfighters
earned lots of money,
00:36:36.000 --> 00:36:39.000
had a lot of women and fame.
00:36:40.000 --> 00:36:43.000
And that's how the name "El Pana"
came to be.
00:36:48.000 --> 00:36:50.000
Poverty must be very tough.
00:36:52.000 --> 00:36:53.000
That's why he became a bullfighter.
00:36:56.000 --> 00:37:00.000
I met "El Pana" one day
before his debut in Plaza Mexico.
00:37:01.000 --> 00:37:03.000
He wanted to train,
00:37:03.000 --> 00:37:07.000
and my father, just to get rid of him,
told him,
00:37:07.000 --> 00:37:12.000
"When you get to fight in Mexico,
I will give you a training session."
00:37:12.000 --> 00:37:15.000
And "Pana said", "Here's the newspaper,
I fight next Sunday."
00:37:15.000 --> 00:37:18.000
So my father prepared the cows.
00:37:19.000 --> 00:37:23.000
He did every trick in the book:
00:37:23.000 --> 00:37:27.000
used banderillas, forward steps
went on his knees, upside down...
00:37:27.000 --> 00:37:33.000
He did everything,
all he does in his shows,
00:37:35.000 --> 00:37:38.000
and I was really surprised.
I asked myself, "Who's this genius?"
00:37:38.000 --> 00:37:42.000
And the next day on his debut,
we all went to see him fight.
00:37:45.000 --> 00:37:46.000
There were young bulls
00:37:47.000 --> 00:37:51.000
and six elder guys,
too old for the job.
00:37:52.000 --> 00:37:54.000
"El Pana" had to go first.
00:37:57.000 --> 00:38:00.000
Out came the first bull and,
I don't know, only God knows...
00:38:02.000 --> 00:38:04.000
He managed to cut the bull's ears,
00:38:07.000 --> 00:38:10.000
and from then on he became "El Pana".
00:38:49.000 --> 00:38:54.000
1978 was a great year,
that year I reached the stars.
00:38:56.000 --> 00:38:58.000
Back then, money went a long way.
00:38:58.000 --> 00:39:02.000
I bought my mother a washing machine
so she wouldn't wash by hand.
00:39:03.000 --> 00:39:06.000
I bought her a television,
something we never had.
00:39:07.000 --> 00:39:10.000
I bought her furniture
and a refrigerator.
00:39:10.000 --> 00:39:12.000
I bought clothes for my brothers.
00:39:12.000 --> 00:39:16.000
Thanks to bullfighting I managed
to bring my family out of misery
00:39:16.000 --> 00:39:18.000
and buy my mother a house.
00:39:23.000 --> 00:39:28.000
"El Pana" was a sensation at Plaza Mexico
in the late 70's
00:39:28.000 --> 00:39:30.000
based on his original
and extravagant style.
00:39:30.000 --> 00:39:33.000
He often seemed
overacted and clownish,
00:39:33.000 --> 00:39:38.000
but no one can deny that he drew crowds
due to his unique personality.
00:39:39.000 --> 00:39:41.000
He fought seven times
in Plaza Mexico,
00:39:41.000 --> 00:39:44.000
earned a lot of money,
a bunch of fans,
00:39:45.000 --> 00:39:46.000
he caused controversy,
00:39:46.000 --> 00:39:49.000
and he even had his name
inscribed in Plaza Mexico.
00:40:14.000 --> 00:40:16.000
Why do you express yourself
like that?
00:40:16.000 --> 00:40:19.000
Why do you use
such a strange vocabulary?
00:40:19.000 --> 00:40:22.000
Spoiled kids don't speak like that,
but streets kids do.
00:40:22.000 --> 00:40:25.000
I became a bullfighter
among the street kids.
00:40:26.000 --> 00:40:30.000
If you go to a small town
any given day,
00:40:31.000 --> 00:40:35.000
you'll hear them talk like that.
00:40:37.000 --> 00:40:40.000
In the bakery
where I used to work
00:40:40.000 --> 00:40:43.000
there was a calendar
with a blond model on it,
00:40:43.000 --> 00:40:48.000
and I told my working mates,
"One day I'll have one like that."
00:40:48.000 --> 00:40:52.000
They made fun of me, they said,
"You're poor and crazy."
00:40:53.000 --> 00:40:57.000
Others said, "What are you smoking?"
00:40:57.000 --> 00:41:00.000
With time,
and thanks to bullfighting,
00:41:00.000 --> 00:41:03.000
I met the woman who later
became my wife in Cancun.
00:41:03.000 --> 00:41:07.000
She is my wife Bamby,
an American girl from Wisconsin.
00:41:08.000 --> 00:41:11.000
By the way, she has the name of a deer.
Her name is Bamby.
00:41:11.000 --> 00:41:16.000
She became the September model
back in her country
00:41:16.000 --> 00:41:18.000
and sent me the calendar.
00:41:24.000 --> 00:41:27.000
In the bullring
I do my best standing still,
00:41:28.000 --> 00:41:30.000
but on the dance floor
you can't see my feet.
00:41:30.000 --> 00:41:32.000
I seduced her with "Pana's" magic
00:41:33.000 --> 00:41:38.000
and that's how
our relationship began.
00:41:38.000 --> 00:41:40.000
She called me in February
00:41:41.000 --> 00:41:46.000
and told me something bad had happened
and wanted to see me alone at the airport.
00:41:47.000 --> 00:41:50.000
And I thought, "Fuck! Maybe I have AIDS
and got her infected."
00:41:52.000 --> 00:41:56.000
But there's a bar at the airport
that serves great alcoholic drinks,
00:41:56.000 --> 00:41:59.000
so I sat down with a coffee
and a cognac.
00:42:00.000 --> 00:42:05.000
After three drinks, I gained strength
and was ready to listen.
00:42:06.000 --> 00:42:09.000
I asked her, "Do you have AIDS?"
She said, "No."
00:42:09.000 --> 00:42:12.000
"Then are you pregnant?"
She said, "Yes."
00:42:13.000 --> 00:42:16.000
I knew that the result
of that relationship
00:42:16.000 --> 00:42:19.000
would come with a hamburger
under the arm,
00:42:21.000 --> 00:42:22.000
with her hotdog.
00:42:23.000 --> 00:42:27.000
When it's for you it's for you,
and when it's not, it's not.
00:42:29.000 --> 00:42:32.000
Did love also make you drink?
00:42:33.000 --> 00:42:38.000
No. "El Pana" doesn't fall in love
00:42:39.000 --> 00:42:41.000
with anyone nor anything.
00:42:42.000 --> 00:42:44.000
Everything is ephemeral,
everything is temporary.
00:42:45.000 --> 00:42:48.000
Failure and success
are completely subjective.
00:42:49.000 --> 00:42:53.000
Every day is a new opportunity
given to us by the higher power
00:42:53.000 --> 00:42:57.000
to go on, to get completely renewed.
00:42:57.000 --> 00:43:03.000
We are created by the image
and likeness of almighty God.
00:43:04.000 --> 00:43:11.000
"Pana", would you be kind to tell me
about your ins and outs of jail?
00:43:12.000 --> 00:43:18.000
We can't ignore the world's events.
00:43:19.000 --> 00:43:23.000
We must not forget
that we're guests on this planet.
00:43:23.000 --> 00:43:29.000
It belongs to our sons and grandchildren,
we're just passing by.
00:43:30.000 --> 00:43:33.000
That's how we inherited it
from our ancestors.
00:43:33.000 --> 00:43:38.000
When France had its nuclear tests
in Mururoa Atoll,
00:43:39.000 --> 00:43:43.000
there was a big tsunami
in the coast of Manzanillo, in Colima,
00:43:43.000 --> 00:43:44.000
and lots of people drowned.
00:43:44.000 --> 00:43:49.000
Due to this event, I interrupted
the bullfight in Plaza Mexico
00:43:49.000 --> 00:43:51.000
and protested
with a poster that read,
00:43:51.000 --> 00:43:53.000
"Chirac, stop your fucking bombing."
00:43:55.000 --> 00:44:01.000
And that night I started my entries
in the local jail.
00:44:18.000 --> 00:44:19.000
Are there assassin bulls?
00:44:19.000 --> 00:44:23.000
There have always been,
but bulls do their thing: they gore.
00:44:24.000 --> 00:44:28.000
In this bull fighting profession,
we've been gored 20 times,
00:44:28.000 --> 00:44:31.000
two of them very serious ones
in the femoral
00:44:31.000 --> 00:44:33.000
and two collarbone fractures.
00:44:33.000 --> 00:44:36.000
But for us, bullfighters,
gores are like medals.
00:44:38.000 --> 00:44:40.000
So I carry twenty medals
in my body.
00:44:41.000 --> 00:44:42.000
Stitched up.
00:44:42.000 --> 00:44:46.000
Practically, where one scar ends
another begins.
00:44:47.000 --> 00:44:49.000
And like they say back home:
"let them pile up".
00:44:52.000 --> 00:44:54.000
So that means
you got really close?
00:44:54.000 --> 00:44:57.000
To bullfight and to get married,
you need to get close.
00:45:55.000 --> 00:45:58.000
They say there's no sacrifice
without glory
00:45:58.000 --> 00:45:59.000
and no glory without sacrifice.
00:46:00.000 --> 00:46:02.000
But "Pana" didn't just appear
out of the blue,
00:46:03.000 --> 00:46:05.000
he didn't start from scratch.
00:46:05.000 --> 00:46:08.000
He didn't rise from the gutter
to succeed.
00:46:09.000 --> 00:46:11.000
"El Pana" comes from shit,
he comes from alcoholism.
00:46:12.000 --> 00:46:14.000
He drinks day and night.
He drinks and sleeps.
00:46:14.000 --> 00:46:18.000
One day I cried with him,
"Brother, don't drink like that".
00:46:19.000 --> 00:46:21.000
"Leave me alone", he said.
00:46:22.000 --> 00:46:26.000
Then he went home, day and night,
night and day...
00:46:26.000 --> 00:46:29.000
He would send his friends for alcohol
00:46:29.000 --> 00:46:32.000
and if you didn't give him the bottle,
he could've died.
00:46:33.000 --> 00:46:39.000
He used to come with a gallon of Pulque,
he drank Pulque like water.
00:46:39.000 --> 00:46:42.000
That's where his addiction comes from.
00:46:42.000 --> 00:46:47.000
Pulque is treacherous and fucking tough,
it's like petroleum.
00:46:49.000 --> 00:46:52.000
Almost every ranch in Tlaxcala
had a tinacal.
00:46:52.000 --> 00:46:55.000
A tinacal is where agave nectar
is fermented.
00:46:55.000 --> 00:46:59.000
What is agave nectar?
It's the base of the so called Pulque.
00:46:59.000 --> 00:47:00.000
It's what makes Pulque ferment.
00:47:02.000 --> 00:47:05.000
Every day they scrape out
the maguey cactus
00:47:05.000 --> 00:47:09.000
and mix the agave nectar to ferment.
00:47:09.000 --> 00:47:12.000
This is the traditional drink
called Pulque.
00:47:12.000 --> 00:47:13.000
Good stuff!
00:47:13.000 --> 00:47:16.000
It has the same substance
as mezcal, mescaline.
00:47:16.000 --> 00:47:19.000
That's why it's good, it's what makes
us say "cheers and enjoy!"
00:47:19.000 --> 00:47:20.000
- Cheers!
- Cheers!
00:47:21.000 --> 00:47:24.000
And there's nothing more surrealistic
than the fucking mescaline.
00:47:25.000 --> 00:47:30.000
"El Pana" is a spiritual being,
he's an everlasting being.
00:47:32.000 --> 00:47:33.000
"El Pana" doesn't know who he is.
00:47:34.000 --> 00:47:35.000
He's a bullfighter, a character.
00:47:36.000 --> 00:47:40.000
Honestly, I, Rodolfo Rodriguez Gonzalez,
don't know who "El Pana" is.
00:48:03.000 --> 00:48:07.000
38 years old, 12 years bullfighting.
People say that...
00:48:08.000 --> 00:48:10.000
- What do they say?
- The crowds.
00:48:10.000 --> 00:48:13.000
- What do they say?
- That they're going to retire you.
00:48:13.000 --> 00:48:14.000
- Who says that?
- The crowds.
00:48:15.000 --> 00:48:17.000
- Okay.
- What do you think about that?
00:48:17.000 --> 00:48:21.000
No. Only a bull
can retire a bullfighter.
00:48:21.000 --> 00:48:24.000
It's the bull that drowns you
or elevates you.
00:48:24.000 --> 00:48:29.000
It draws you out of misery and feeds you
like it has fed me, thank God.
00:48:29.000 --> 00:48:31.000
It's the bull who decides.
00:48:32.000 --> 00:48:38.000
Something I admired about "El Pana"
is that every time I went to Apizaco,
00:48:39.000 --> 00:48:40.000
he was training.
00:48:41.000 --> 00:48:46.000
He was always in training suit,
because he is always training.
00:48:46.000 --> 00:48:49.000
He plays front tennis,
and then he goes to the canteen...
00:48:51.000 --> 00:48:56.000
...where he doesn't drink Gatorade,
he drinks beer.
00:48:57.000 --> 00:48:59.000
If there's Pulque, Pulque,
00:48:59.000 --> 00:49:03.000
but since it's hard to find,
he now drinks Charanda.
00:49:05.000 --> 00:49:09.000
How can I explain...
Charanda is cheaper than soda.
00:49:10.000 --> 00:49:15.000
Charanda is made of sugar cane.
It's cheap sugar cane hard liquor.
00:49:16.000 --> 00:49:19.000
He used to come over
and drink it like water.
00:49:19.000 --> 00:49:20.000
"Come on, man!"
00:49:21.000 --> 00:49:25.000
As "Pana's" star began to die...
00:49:25.000 --> 00:49:28.000
...his addiction to alcohol grew.
00:49:29.000 --> 00:49:33.000
I fell very low,
you can't fall any lower.
00:49:34.000 --> 00:49:36.000
AUGUST 2006
00:49:39.000 --> 00:49:42.000
Passion, feelings and party
00:49:42.000 --> 00:49:45.000
are the ingredients
of this bullfighting festival
00:49:45.000 --> 00:49:50.000
anchored by Heriberto Murrieta
and Alejandro Silveti.
00:49:50.000 --> 00:49:53.000
Hello, friends, how are you?
Well, I am shocked.
00:49:54.000 --> 00:49:56.000
I received a call
from a reliable source
00:49:57.000 --> 00:50:02.000
saying that "El Pana" is dying
and suffering delirium and hallucinations
00:50:02.000 --> 00:50:04.000
in his house in Apizaco,
00:50:04.000 --> 00:50:08.000
due to many years
of intense alcoholism.
00:50:10.000 --> 00:50:12.000
It's been many years of alcoholism.
00:50:12.000 --> 00:50:15.000
It's sad to see "El Pana"
throw away his life,
00:50:16.000 --> 00:50:19.000
and it's unlikely that we'll see him
fight again.
00:50:19.000 --> 00:50:21.000
He has even drank lotions,
00:50:21.000 --> 00:50:24.000
not considering that the chemicals
contained in the lotions
00:50:24.000 --> 00:50:26.000
are causing severe damage
to his liver.
00:50:27.000 --> 00:50:31.000
What a terrible situation is the
bullfighter of Apizaco going through.
00:50:32.000 --> 00:50:35.000
The bullfighting program
of FM Centro.
00:50:35.000 --> 00:50:37.000
Good afternoon, friends.
00:50:37.000 --> 00:50:42.000
Welcome to the bullfighting program
transmitted from Apizaco, Tlaxcala.
00:50:42.000 --> 00:50:47.000
Today's program is dedicated
to the shaman of Apizaco,
00:50:47.000 --> 00:50:48.000
Rodolfo Rodriguez, "El Pana",
00:50:48.000 --> 00:50:51.000
whom after a long absence
from the bullrings,
00:50:51.000 --> 00:50:55.000
fell into a deep emotional
and economic crisis.
00:50:55.000 --> 00:51:00.000
The last person to see him was his
godson Mario Martinez "Fierrerito",
00:51:00.000 --> 00:51:05.000
or more precisely, his "Bullson"
as "El Pana" calls him.
00:51:05.000 --> 00:51:08.000
Let's hear from Fierrerito
00:51:08.000 --> 00:51:10.000
in what conditions he found
the shaman of Apizaco.
00:51:13.000 --> 00:51:17.000
My father called me and told me
that Rodolfo wanted to talk to me
00:51:17.000 --> 00:51:20.000
because he was feeling very ill.
00:51:20.000 --> 00:51:24.000
He had been drinking every day
for four, five months in a row.
00:51:24.000 --> 00:51:27.000
I got to see him lying on the street
completely drunk.
00:51:28.000 --> 00:51:30.000
And next to his bed,
00:51:30.000 --> 00:51:34.000
I saw about seven empty bottles
of alcohol.
00:51:34.000 --> 00:51:37.000
He rubbed his trembling hands
00:51:37.000 --> 00:51:39.000
and told me
that God had descended,
00:51:39.000 --> 00:51:43.000
represented by a very bright light.
00:51:44.000 --> 00:51:47.000
The first that came to our minds
00:51:47.000 --> 00:51:50.000
was that the matador
had hit rock bottom
00:51:50.000 --> 00:51:55.000
and that in his delirium
he had seen a light he thought was God.
00:51:56.000 --> 00:52:00.000
He even said that God
had touched his hands and his soul,
00:52:01.000 --> 00:52:03.000
and told him that he would succeed
in Mexico.
00:52:06.000 --> 00:52:10.000
FOUR MONTHS LATER
00:52:14.000 --> 00:52:17.000
A magnificent entrance
into Plaza Mexico
00:52:17.000 --> 00:52:21.000
by Rodolfo Rodriguez, "El Pana",
for his last bullfight.
00:52:21.000 --> 00:52:27.000
There he is, smoking his cigar,
dressed in pink with silver embroidery,
00:52:29.000 --> 00:52:32.000
in his unique style,
holding his pink cape.
00:52:33.000 --> 00:52:37.000
This is the last romantic
and misunderstood genius
00:52:37.000 --> 00:52:40.000
as he greets his crowd
for the last time
00:52:40.000 --> 00:52:46.000
from the arena where he's performed
so many times.
00:52:46.000 --> 00:52:50.000
There he is, walking to the middle
of the ring with his own style
00:52:50.000 --> 00:52:53.000
as the audience fondly welcomes
00:52:53.000 --> 00:52:56.000
this unique and controverted
bohemian bullfighter,
00:52:56.000 --> 00:53:00.000
technically limited but with a lot
of expression and personality.
00:53:01.000 --> 00:53:06.000
Colorist, smart, magnetic
and with a big mouth.
00:53:07.000 --> 00:53:09.000
He has made many mistakes,
00:53:10.000 --> 00:53:14.000
but today, with all justice,
00:53:14.000 --> 00:53:17.000
Plaza Mexico is giving him
his farewell fight
00:53:17.000 --> 00:53:20.000
in the most important bullring
of the country.
00:53:20.000 --> 00:53:22.000
And the crowd embraces
00:53:22.000 --> 00:53:26.000
the charismatic bullfighter
from Tlaxcala,
00:53:26.000 --> 00:53:28.000
an unpredictable bullfighter.
One thing I can assure you
00:53:28.000 --> 00:53:31.000
is that this will not be
a discrete performance.
00:54:26.000 --> 00:54:29.000
I would like to dedicate
the last bull of my career
00:54:30.000 --> 00:54:35.000
to all the courtesans, harlots,
call girls, prostitutes,
00:54:37.000 --> 00:54:41.000
hookers, sluts, whores,
00:54:41.000 --> 00:54:44.000
and all those girls that cured my hunger
and quenched my thirst.
00:54:45.000 --> 00:54:46.000
When "Pana" was nobody,
00:54:46.000 --> 00:54:50.000
they gave me protection and warmth
in their breasts and inner thighs
00:54:50.000 --> 00:54:52.000
during my most loneliest moments.
00:54:52.000 --> 00:54:54.000
God bless them for loving so much!
00:55:43.000 --> 00:55:49.000
And the farewell song starts playing.
It has been a right side performance.
00:55:57.000 --> 00:55:59.000
What a feeling!
00:56:01.000 --> 00:56:06.000
Like a painting altogether,
he finishes with a wonderful pass.
00:56:07.000 --> 00:56:10.000
What a fighter!
What a performance!
00:56:36.000 --> 00:56:40.000
After a subtle, extraordinary
and superb movement,
00:56:41.000 --> 00:56:43.000
the last romantic bullfighter
threw his fighting cape
00:56:43.000 --> 00:56:46.000
and walked away from the magnificent
bull from Garfias,
00:56:46.000 --> 00:56:48.000
as if he was leaving the ring.
00:57:08.000 --> 00:57:12.000
This is the difficult part for Rodolfo.
He's never been good killing the bull.
00:57:12.000 --> 00:57:15.000
Let's see if he gets
to stab the sword.
00:57:22.000 --> 00:57:25.000
The crowd is going crazy
with his outstanding performance.
00:57:26.000 --> 00:57:29.000
Such an irony, the success
denied to him so many times
00:57:30.000 --> 00:57:33.000
has conquered him on the day
of his retirement.
00:57:39.000 --> 00:57:42.000
God bless you! God bless you!
00:57:43.000 --> 00:57:50.000
Bullfighter! Bullfighter!
Bullfighter! Bullfighter!
00:57:50.000 --> 00:57:53.000
One, two, three!
00:58:09.000 --> 00:58:11.000
You dedicated a bull to the whores?
00:58:11.000 --> 00:58:13.000
It was a tribute to them,
00:58:13.000 --> 00:58:16.000
because in the life of the bullfighter,
the buñis,
00:58:16.000 --> 00:58:21.000
in the language of the gypsy, romani,
go hand by hand with bullfighters.
00:58:21.000 --> 00:58:25.000
If you succeed,
they just come to you,
00:58:25.000 --> 00:58:29.000
but if you fail,
you can always go find them,
00:58:29.000 --> 00:58:33.000
because in the shoulder of a whore
00:58:34.000 --> 00:58:37.000
you can relieve all your sorrows.
00:58:37.000 --> 00:58:41.000
She has the same patience
as the bartender,
00:58:42.000 --> 00:58:45.000
so you can talk all your troubles
and speak your mind to them.
00:58:45.000 --> 00:58:48.000
You found company and pleasure
with the whores.
00:58:48.000 --> 00:58:52.000
Above all, human warmth,
which is hard to get.
00:58:56.000 --> 00:58:59.000
I remember one of them...
00:59:00.000 --> 00:59:02.000
She invited me to dinner
00:59:02.000 --> 00:59:08.000
in some rotten lost town
in the sierra,
00:59:08.000 --> 00:59:11.000
and then she invited me
to her hotel room.
00:59:11.000 --> 00:59:15.000
When I was supposed to fuck her,
00:59:15.000 --> 00:59:20.000
I told her all I wanted
was her warm body next to mine,
00:59:20.000 --> 00:59:22.000
because I was very cold.
00:59:22.000 --> 00:59:25.000
To all those girls that cured my hunger
and quenched my thirst,
00:59:25.000 --> 00:59:30.000
and gave me protection and warmth
in their breasts and inner thighs
00:59:30.000 --> 00:59:31.000
in my loneliest moments,
00:59:31.000 --> 00:59:35.000
I wanted to dedicate
the last bull of my life as a bullfighter.
00:59:35.000 --> 00:59:38.000
Nonetheless, that big day,
even the President called you.
00:59:38.000 --> 00:59:42.000
That day was a wake-up call
that even Saint Peter heard it.
00:59:43.000 --> 00:59:50.000
What was supposed to be a farewell,
became practically a resurrection.
00:59:50.000 --> 00:59:52.000
BULLFIGHTING IS BETTER
WITH "El PANA"
00:59:52.000 --> 00:59:53.000
FROM THE HELL OF ALCOHOLISM
TO GLORY
00:59:53.000 --> 00:59:55.000
SENSATIONAL!
00:59:55.000 --> 00:59:57.000
THE LAST ROMANTIC
00:59:57.000 --> 00:59:59.000
WAY TO GO, "PANA"!
00:59:59.000 --> 01:00:00.000
"EL PANA" SUCCEEDS
01:00:00.000 --> 01:00:03.000
DON'T GO, "PANA"!
01:00:37.000 --> 01:00:40.000
What has been the most exciting part
about bullfighting?
01:00:42.000 --> 01:00:44.000
To bullfight is to bullfight,
01:00:44.000 --> 01:00:48.000
but when you do it right,
it's a constant orgasm.
01:00:49.000 --> 01:00:51.000
It's an exquisite delight.
01:00:51.000 --> 01:00:53.000
It's true ecstasy.
01:00:53.000 --> 01:00:55.000
You're no longer yourself.
01:00:57.000 --> 01:01:00.000
You leave your body, you let go,
01:01:00.000 --> 01:01:03.000
and your spirit takes over.
01:01:03.000 --> 01:01:04.000
Danger doesn't exist,
01:01:05.000 --> 01:01:07.000
the bull doesn't exist.
01:01:07.000 --> 01:01:10.000
You're completely outside yourself.
01:01:11.000 --> 01:01:16.000
You only hear a constant ovation,
outside yourself,
01:01:17.000 --> 01:01:19.000
completely abandoned.
01:01:28.000 --> 01:01:31.000
That's why he's poor,
because he can't handle money.
01:01:31.000 --> 01:01:33.000
He spends it all, he invites everyone.
01:01:34.000 --> 01:01:37.000
Once he invited me to Guadalajara,
he fought,
01:01:37.000 --> 01:01:39.000
and we went to Guanatos Today
01:01:40.000 --> 01:01:44.000
a whorehouse in Guadalajara.
01:01:44.000 --> 01:01:46.000
More than seeking a fuck,
01:01:47.000 --> 01:01:52.000
we went to enjoy the atmosphere
of the whorehouse and the prostitutes,
01:01:52.000 --> 01:01:56.000
we went just for fun,
drinks and singing.
01:01:56.000 --> 01:01:59.000
It was not about getting laid,
01:01:59.000 --> 01:02:01.000
it was about having a good time.
01:02:01.000 --> 01:02:04.000
Do you know how much money
he brought back home? With nothing.
01:02:05.000 --> 01:02:09.000
I know most canteens in Guadalajara
and almost every whorehouse.
01:02:09.000 --> 01:02:10.000
What do you like most?
01:02:10.000 --> 01:02:13.000
What I love most are the panties
and the smell of shit.
01:02:37.000 --> 01:02:38.000
HOT
01:02:43.000 --> 01:02:45.000
This is where
all the action really happens.
01:02:53.000 --> 01:02:55.000
This is where
all the action really happens.
01:02:59.000 --> 01:03:00.000
How do you call this room?
01:03:01.000 --> 01:03:02.000
C.F.
01:03:04.000 --> 01:03:05.000
Come and Fuck.
01:03:15.000 --> 01:03:21.000
This was my first wound by a stallion bull
at Piedras Negras.
01:03:22.000 --> 01:03:27.000
This was in Tlaxcala. It split my femoral
and damaged a main vein.
01:03:27.000 --> 01:03:31.000
This was in Plaza Mexico.
For these two I got the holy oil.
01:03:31.000 --> 01:03:33.000
There's another one here.
01:03:33.000 --> 01:03:36.000
Another one on this buttock.
01:03:38.000 --> 01:03:40.000
This one was very complicated,
01:03:40.000 --> 01:03:44.000
because it's in an area
where there are many nerve endings.
01:03:44.000 --> 01:03:48.000
These two penetrated my belly.
It entered through here.
01:03:50.000 --> 01:03:54.000
Here, they opened me up
and took out my guts.
01:03:54.000 --> 01:03:56.000
I have twenty wounds.
01:03:57.000 --> 01:04:00.000
This hole is from a piece of bone
they removed.
01:04:02.000 --> 01:04:05.000
- It seems that you'll never die.
- I don't know.
01:04:07.000 --> 01:04:10.000
There are two things
you can't escape from:
01:04:12.000 --> 01:04:13.000
infidelity and death.
01:04:14.000 --> 01:04:15.000
That's right!
01:04:33.000 --> 01:04:36.000
Can I shake hands
with the Mayor of this town?
01:04:38.000 --> 01:04:40.000
Congratulations!
01:04:40.000 --> 01:04:41.000
Pull with all your guts.
01:04:43.000 --> 01:04:46.000
RODOLFO RODRIGUEZ, "EL PANA"
STREET
01:04:47.000 --> 01:04:53.000
Present company excluded, not any asshole
gets a street name after him.
01:04:54.000 --> 01:04:57.000
Gentlemen, about time. God bless you.
Thank you very much.
01:05:10.000 --> 01:05:16.000
Dear teacher, today we reveal the plaque
that officially states the change in name
01:05:18.000 --> 01:05:21.000
to Monumental Bullring Rodolfo Rodriguez,
"El Pana".
01:05:21.000 --> 01:05:23.000
We want to tell the world
01:05:23.000 --> 01:05:27.000
about the life of a great man
and of a great era,
01:05:28.000 --> 01:05:31.000
and that man is Rodolfo Rodriguez,
"El Pana".
01:05:31.000 --> 01:05:37.000
Apizaco now has a face and flavor
thanks to the Apizaco shaman,
01:05:37.000 --> 01:05:42.000
the last romantic,
the genius that in his misunderstandings
01:05:42.000 --> 01:05:44.000
has made us love him so dearly.
Thank you very much.
01:05:49.000 --> 01:05:53.000
BULLRING OF APIZACO
RODOLFO RODRIGUEZ, "El PANA"
01:06:17.000 --> 01:06:19.000
After killing the bull with one stroke,
01:06:20.000 --> 01:06:25.000
the crowd cheers for the judge
to reward Rodolfo Rodriguez, "El Pana".
01:06:27.000 --> 01:06:31.000
The judge takes out two handkerchiefs,
granting him two ears,
01:06:31.000 --> 01:06:36.000
but "Pana" wants more,
he wants the tail.
01:06:38.000 --> 01:06:42.000
The horses approach the dead bull
to pull it out,
01:06:42.000 --> 01:06:45.000
but I can't believe my eyes.
01:06:46.000 --> 01:06:49.000
"El Pana" is grabbing
on to the bull's tail
01:06:50.000 --> 01:06:53.000
as if wanting to be
dragged along with it.
01:06:55.000 --> 01:06:57.000
The judge keeps...
01:07:00.000 --> 01:07:03.000
...his decision
and orders for the bull to be taken out.
01:07:03.000 --> 01:07:04.000
I can't believe this.
01:07:05.000 --> 01:07:10.000
"El Pana" asks for a knife
and he's cutting off the tail himself.
01:07:11.000 --> 01:07:16.000
This is an offense to the judge.
He can go to jail for this.
01:07:20.000 --> 01:07:21.000
He gets the two ears,
01:07:22.000 --> 01:07:27.000
and along with the tail,
he walks around the bullring.
01:07:28.000 --> 01:07:31.000
The judge is on the phone,
perhaps with the police
01:07:32.000 --> 01:07:34.000
to have the bullfighter arrested.
01:07:35.000 --> 01:07:38.000
We must not forget
that this is a public event,
01:07:39.000 --> 01:07:41.000
preceded by a judge
that represents the authorities.
01:08:05.000 --> 01:08:09.000
The big news today is that
after many years of struggle,
01:08:09.000 --> 01:08:12.000
finally, Rodolfo Rodriguez ,"El Pana",
will cross the Atlantic
01:08:12.000 --> 01:08:16.000
to fight in Madrid
at Vista Alegre bullring,
01:08:16.000 --> 01:08:18.000
the second most important one
after Las Ventas,
01:08:18.000 --> 01:08:23.000
where he dreams to confirm
his vow as a bullfighter.
01:09:21.000 --> 01:09:25.000
MORANTE IS BACK
HISTORIC BULLFIGHT
01:09:40.000 --> 01:09:44.000
I see few possibilities for him
to confirm the alternative.
01:09:44.000 --> 01:09:45.000
That's the truth.
01:09:46.000 --> 01:09:50.000
We all know you can't compare
Spanish bulls to Mexican bulls.
01:09:50.000 --> 01:09:53.000
The size of the bull is indisputable.
01:09:54.000 --> 01:09:57.000
It's another way to view
and perceive bullfighting.
01:09:57.000 --> 01:10:02.000
It's definitely more difficult to become
a bullfighter in Spain than in Mexico.
01:10:13.000 --> 01:10:14.000
You didn't wish me luck.
01:10:15.000 --> 01:10:17.000
I wish all the luck in world.
01:10:46.000 --> 01:10:47.000
A victory erases everything.
01:10:48.000 --> 01:10:51.000
At this point in my life,
I wouldn't change myself for anyone.
01:10:52.000 --> 01:10:56.000
I had a tough time as a bullfighter,
but it's all forgotten.
01:10:57.000 --> 01:11:04.000
I just have to look forward.
Life is good to me.
01:11:05.000 --> 01:11:09.000
God is good and merciful with me.
I can't complain.
01:11:10.000 --> 01:11:14.000
There's a shoemaker in my town,
the father of my assistant,
01:11:14.000 --> 01:11:16.000
he's a foul-mothed, and he says,
01:11:16.000 --> 01:11:20.000
"If I asked God for one more thing,
he'd tell me to go fuck myself".
01:11:21.000 --> 01:11:23.000
If you were born a hundred times,
you'd still be a bullfighter?
01:11:23.000 --> 01:11:28.000
Yes. I couldn't do anything else,
because I'm a natural bum.
01:11:29.000 --> 01:11:32.000
To be a bullfighter
you have to be a bum,
01:11:32.000 --> 01:11:34.000
you have to be an asshole,
a son of a bitch.
01:11:35.000 --> 01:11:36.000
Are you a son of a bitch?
01:11:36.000 --> 01:11:39.000
- To a certain extent.
- When?
01:11:39.000 --> 01:11:42.000
When I'm in the bullring,
no one else exists.
01:11:43.000 --> 01:11:46.000
My career is very selfish.
01:11:46.000 --> 01:11:51.000
First me, second me, third me,
and after everything else, me.
01:13:35.000 --> 01:13:38.000
"Pana" fought yesterday
in Vista Alegre, Madrid.
01:13:39.000 --> 01:13:42.000
His dream of fighting in Spain
was finally came true,
01:13:42.000 --> 01:13:44.000
in a face to face match
with Morante de la Puebla.
01:13:44.000 --> 01:13:48.000
Although his performance
wasn't bad at all,
01:13:48.000 --> 01:13:52.000
his personal expectations
weren't fully fulfilled.
01:13:53.000 --> 01:13:55.000
He began to drink
right after the fight?
01:13:55.000 --> 01:14:00.000
Yes. That day, when I went for him,
he was obviously drinking.
01:14:01.000 --> 01:14:03.000
What were you looking for
in the bottle?
01:14:03.000 --> 01:14:07.000
Honestly, most of the time
I don't know what I'm looking for.
01:14:08.000 --> 01:14:11.000
We are irrational beasts.
01:14:11.000 --> 01:14:16.000
Most of the time we are completely
intoxicated of alcohol
01:14:16.000 --> 01:14:18.000
and we still want to drink shit.
01:14:18.000 --> 01:14:20.000
To tell you the truth, I don't know.
01:14:20.000 --> 01:14:24.000
In my hometown we say that when God gives,
he lends a wheelbarrow.
01:14:25.000 --> 01:14:30.000
In Plaza Mexico, a man once
approached me and said,
01:14:30.000 --> 01:14:36.000
"Pana", now that God
has taken good care of you,
01:14:37.000 --> 01:14:40.000
don't spit his face by drinking."
01:14:42.000 --> 01:14:46.000
But I must confess that many times
01:14:46.000 --> 01:14:50.000
I have spit on God's face.
01:15:56.000 --> 01:16:01.000
Well, we bought the tickets
01:16:02.000 --> 01:16:03.000
that were left,
01:16:04.000 --> 01:16:08.000
and then... Well, there were
three of four people,
01:16:08.000 --> 01:16:15.000
so his daughter had to travel with three
or four people I didn't really like.
01:16:16.000 --> 01:16:21.000
So I talked to a lady
to see if we could trade places.
01:16:22.000 --> 01:16:25.000
So we did, and from then on,
01:16:25.000 --> 01:16:29.000
I really don't want
to give more explanations.
01:17:11.000 --> 01:17:13.000
and drinking the entire
bottle of French wine.
01:18:01.000 --> 01:18:02.000
Be careful.
01:18:15.000 --> 01:18:16.000
How did you end up here, matador?
01:18:17.000 --> 01:18:18.000
Somehow...
01:18:20.000 --> 01:18:25.000
My sister was waiting for me
at the train station.
01:18:27.000 --> 01:18:30.000
I waited for you all Thursday
and all Friday
01:18:31.000 --> 01:18:33.000
and you never showed up.
01:18:37.000 --> 01:18:39.000
You got here on Saturday at dawn.
01:18:41.000 --> 01:18:42.000
Really?
01:18:42.000 --> 01:18:47.000
You got to Basel on the 1st,
at one in the morning.
01:18:47.000 --> 01:18:48.000
How did you find out I arrived?
01:18:48.000 --> 01:18:52.000
You called me on the phone.
From the station?
01:18:52.000 --> 01:18:53.000
Yes.
01:18:55.000 --> 01:19:01.000
You called me told me to pick you up
at the train station.
01:19:03.000 --> 01:19:05.000
That's how I got here, right?
01:19:06.000 --> 01:19:08.000
- Where were you?
- In France.
01:19:08.000 --> 01:19:11.000
Well, the train left me.
01:19:11.000 --> 01:19:17.000
I arrived five minutes earlier
to get on the train,
01:19:18.000 --> 01:19:20.000
but it had already left.
01:19:21.000 --> 01:19:24.000
I had to wait four hours
at the station,
01:19:24.000 --> 01:19:29.000
and during those four hours,
the police arrested me.
01:19:30.000 --> 01:19:36.000
They took my daughter away from me
and took her to Child Protection.
01:19:37.000 --> 01:19:41.000
- Where did they take you?
- They took me to jail.
01:19:42.000 --> 01:19:46.000
They kept me there all night
and all morning.
01:19:46.000 --> 01:19:48.000
I was released the next day
at around noon.
01:19:49.000 --> 01:19:51.000
What did you do then?
01:19:52.000 --> 01:19:57.000
The first thing I did was go to a bar
and have a few drinks.
01:19:59.000 --> 01:20:01.000
And I kept drinking on the train.
01:20:03.000 --> 01:20:09.000
I asked this lady if she had
anything to drink and she said "no."
01:20:10.000 --> 01:20:12.000
But I found...
01:20:13.000 --> 01:20:16.000
I found...
01:20:17.000 --> 01:20:21.000
...a perfume bottle,
and I said, "bingo."
01:20:22.000 --> 01:20:25.000
So I drank the perfume.
01:20:25.000 --> 01:20:27.000
- Two bottles?
- No, two drinks.
01:20:29.000 --> 01:20:30.000
Yes.
01:20:36.000 --> 01:20:40.000
Leave him like this.
It'd be better if he died.
01:20:41.000 --> 01:20:44.000
If he's going to live like this,
it's better if he dies,
01:20:44.000 --> 01:20:48.000
because I don't want a crazy son.
01:20:50.000 --> 01:20:52.000
You can't go lower than that.
01:20:53.000 --> 01:20:57.000
That's why addicts,
men of "just for today",
01:20:59.000 --> 01:21:04.000
can only appeal
to the greatness of our Lord,
01:21:05.000 --> 01:21:09.000
to the glory of that Lord
that promised us salvation.
01:21:09.000 --> 01:21:12.000
We shouldn't forget that the leave
doesn't fall off a tree
01:21:12.000 --> 01:21:13.000
without God's will.
01:21:24.000 --> 01:21:27.000
Alcohol triggers obsession.
01:21:27.000 --> 01:21:29.000
Not the day I start to drink,
01:21:29.000 --> 01:21:33.000
but the next day, when I have a hungover,
I wake up with a strong sexual appetite.
01:21:33.000 --> 01:21:39.000
To have sex, I go out
to look for my occasional friends,
01:21:41.000 --> 01:21:46.000
and if a buño comes along
and offers himself, then I take him.
01:21:47.000 --> 01:21:49.000
- What is a buño?
- A fag.
01:21:50.000 --> 01:21:52.000
Now they're called "gays".
01:21:57.000 --> 01:21:59.000
In my town they have another name.
01:21:59.000 --> 01:22:02.000
That's what homosexuals are for.
01:22:04.000 --> 01:22:07.000
They nurture your bad habits
just as long as you sleep with them.
01:22:07.000 --> 01:22:09.000
I just wanted to keep drinking.
01:22:10.000 --> 01:22:14.000
I would get on top, ejaculate
and get out of there.
01:22:16.000 --> 01:22:18.000
Those are aberrant acts.
01:22:19.000 --> 01:22:22.000
I suppressed them
and that was deteriorating my soul.
01:22:37.000 --> 01:22:43.000
Alcohol is not appealing to me anymore.
I don't turn to look at bars nor canteens.
01:22:43.000 --> 01:22:48.000
I don't turn to look at Pulque shops
and I don't turn to look at liquor stores.
01:22:49.000 --> 01:22:51.000
I'm good with myself.
01:22:51.000 --> 01:22:54.000
"El Pana" is good
with Rodolfo Rodriguez
01:22:54.000 --> 01:22:56.000
and Rodolfo Rodriguez
is good with "El Pana".
01:22:56.000 --> 01:23:02.000
When the person and the spirit
are on the same path, everything's good.
01:24:06.000 --> 01:24:09.000
I'm doing good. It's been two years
without drinking.
01:24:11.000 --> 01:24:17.000
One drop of alcohol could end
my two years of sobriety,
01:24:18.000 --> 01:24:19.000
so I won't spoil it.
01:24:20.000 --> 01:24:24.000
Imagine having a daughter
01:24:25.000 --> 01:24:27.000
whom I lost due to my addiction.
01:24:29.000 --> 01:24:35.000
I had been carrying that burden
for two years.
01:24:37.000 --> 01:24:42.000
I went looking for her
all the way to where she lives.
01:24:44.000 --> 01:24:46.000
I was willing to do anything...
01:24:49.000 --> 01:24:50.000
...to get her forgiveness.
01:24:52.000 --> 01:24:54.000
And thank God I got it.
01:24:55.000 --> 01:24:59.000
Before leaving Apizaco
I prayed to God
01:25:00.000 --> 01:25:03.000
so that He would put everything
in harmony,
01:25:05.000 --> 01:25:08.000
so that under His will
my daughter would forgive me.
01:25:10.000 --> 01:25:11.000
And thank God I made it.
01:25:13.000 --> 01:25:15.000
Will "Pana" retire someday or never?
01:25:15.000 --> 01:25:20.000
I'm just waiting to turn in my thesis
as a bullfighter
01:25:21.000 --> 01:25:25.000
in the Complutense University
of Bullfighting in Madrid,
01:25:26.000 --> 01:25:28.000
which I am about to accomplish.
01:25:28.000 --> 01:25:30.000
I will not back down on this.
01:25:36.000 --> 01:25:38.000
MEXICAN RED CROSS
01:25:50.000 --> 01:25:55.000
His bile erupted.
This could be fatal for any person.
01:25:56.000 --> 01:25:59.000
Miraculously he came out fine.
01:25:59.000 --> 01:26:03.000
- How's his condition?
- His health is extremely delicate.
01:26:11.000 --> 01:26:13.000
When you're strapped here,
01:26:17.000 --> 01:26:21.000
the body, Sancho, asks for rest.
01:26:22.000 --> 01:26:28.000
But the spirit, Quixote,
is the one who drives you through.
01:26:30.000 --> 01:26:35.000
Everyone wants the shaman to go,
but the shaman doesn't want to leave.
01:26:37.000 --> 01:26:42.000
Let's wait for my day. I've always
been waiting for my last bull.
01:26:43.000 --> 01:26:47.000
I've always thought that "Pana"
will end in the bullring. Let's wait.
01:26:48.000 --> 01:26:49.000
Let's leave it up to God.
01:26:50.000 --> 01:26:52.000
We let him go yesterday
01:26:52.000 --> 01:26:57.000
with strict indications
that he should not bullfight.
01:26:58.000 --> 01:27:02.000
He needs to rest for at least
90 to 120 days.
01:27:03.000 --> 01:27:06.000
He was very close to death.
01:27:10.000 --> 01:27:12.000
I'm not interested
in having possessions,
01:27:12.000 --> 01:27:16.000
properties, houses, none of that.
01:27:16.000 --> 01:27:23.000
Just the gesture of someone
saying hello to me on the street,
01:27:23.000 --> 01:27:25.000
with affection, satisfies me.
01:27:25.000 --> 01:27:29.000
"Goodbye, 'Pana'!"
"Goodbye, brother. How are you?"
01:27:29.000 --> 01:27:33.000
"Hey, "Pana"! How are you, bro?
God bless you."
01:27:34.000 --> 01:27:37.000
Fortunately my family has everything
to have a good life,
01:27:40.000 --> 01:27:43.000
and everything else
is for my fellow mankind.
01:27:44.000 --> 01:27:49.000
You know what really hurts me?
Human misery.
01:27:52.000 --> 01:27:57.000
Despite his bad conditions,
"El Pana" has made the decision to fight
01:27:57.000 --> 01:28:00.000
in the opening of the festival
in Aguascalientes.
01:28:01.000 --> 01:28:05.000
Neither his doctor nor his agent
agree with his unwise decision.
01:28:05.000 --> 01:28:09.000
But for those of us
who know this unique character,
01:28:09.000 --> 01:28:12.000
we know that when he gets something
in his head,
01:28:12.000 --> 01:28:14.000
nothing can change his mind.
01:28:15.000 --> 01:28:18.000
This foolishness to go fight
in Aguascalientes
01:28:18.000 --> 01:28:22.000
is his dream to fight in Mexico's
most popular bullfighting city.
01:28:23.000 --> 01:28:26.000
Can a doctor or an agent
take away that dream
01:28:26.000 --> 01:28:28.000
from a 60 year old bullfighter?
01:28:28.000 --> 01:28:29.000
Definitely not.
01:28:30.000 --> 01:28:34.000
Because this event is worth more
to him than the money he'll get.
01:28:35.000 --> 01:28:36.000
It's more than that.
01:28:36.000 --> 01:28:40.000
It's the satisfaction to perform
in the festival
01:28:40.000 --> 01:28:45.000
and to live this moment that perhaps
"Pana" thought would never live
01:28:45.000 --> 01:28:47.000
during his intermittent career.
01:28:47.000 --> 01:28:51.000
Rodolfo's attitude is closer
to an immolation than to a feat,
01:28:51.000 --> 01:28:54.000
and it reminds me of the stoic figure
of other bullfighters
01:28:54.000 --> 01:28:57.000
that would rather die in the ring,
to the gore of a bull,
01:28:58.000 --> 01:29:03.000
than to find in suicide a bright light
at the end of their dark existence.
01:29:05.000 --> 01:29:07.000
I don't know
if you agree with me,
01:29:08.000 --> 01:29:10.000
but I would rather be a bullfighter
than a king.
01:29:38.000 --> 01:29:43.000
Put my white dress on
01:29:44.000 --> 01:29:47.000
The one we got married with
01:29:49.000 --> 01:29:52.000
No matter how much
The doctor rushes it
01:29:53.000 --> 01:29:56.000
Our ranch is too far away
01:29:56.000 --> 01:30:00.000
Don't spend more money in remedies
01:30:01.000 --> 01:30:04.000
I am getting very weak
01:30:04.000 --> 01:30:08.000
Just put my white dress on
01:30:08.000 --> 01:30:12.000
Oh, my Lord is calling me
01:30:17.000 --> 01:30:21.000
Oh, my Lord
01:30:29.000 --> 01:30:33.000
Oh, my Lord
01:30:37.000 --> 01:30:40.000
Everything turns silent
01:30:41.000 --> 01:30:44.000
Only Juan tells her
01:30:45.000 --> 01:30:48.000
You should see
The beautiful vegetables
01:30:49.000 --> 01:30:52.000
That are growing on the slopes
01:30:53.000 --> 01:30:56.000
But I don't want anything
01:30:57.000 --> 01:31:00.000
I will give everything away...
01:31:06.000 --> 01:31:11.000
On May 1st, 2016,
in the mysterious and divine land
01:31:11.000 --> 01:31:16.000
of Lerdo bullring, Durango, a bull
called "Pan Francés" killed "El Pana"
01:31:16.000 --> 01:31:21.000
and made Rodolfo Rodríguez quadriplegic.
01:31:21.000 --> 01:31:28.000
In that same act, God's will
and mankind's desire were fulfilled.
Distributor: Pragda Films
Length: 70 minutes
Date: 2017
Genre: Expository
Language: Spanish
Grade: High School, College, Adult
Color/BW:
Closed Captioning: Available
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