Daily Record The matador

It's just before Christmas, and Pierce Brosnan is holding his breath. His new film, "The Matador," co-starring Greg Kinnear and Hope Davis, opened wide Friday. And it's not what you'd expect from the Irish fella who made a name for himself playing TV's Remington Steele in the 1980s and James Bond in the '90s. Brosnan starred in four Bond films before being unceremoniously booted from the 007 squad last year. Never mind that Brosnan, at 52, looks better than ever,His blue eyes are beautifully, even beneath the scruffy ZZ.Top beard,which he grew for "Seraphim Falls," a Civil War epic he is filming with Liam Neeson.
In "The Matador," written and directed by Richard Shepard, he plays Julian Noble - a stubbly, alcoholic, un-Bond-like hit man who's been shaken, stirred, chewed up and spit out. But, hey, if going "ugly" can work for Charlize Theron come Oscar time, why not go for it? (It's already earned him a Golden Globe nomination.)
Have you ever painted your toenails - or had them painted?
No, no I haven't. [He laughs.] And I have no desire to have them painted.
Did the wardrobe help flesh out Julian's character?
I told the costume designer, "Cowboy boots. I see cowboy boots." So she came up with those crazy, Cuban-heeled, commedia dell'arte, phallic boots. And that developed the walk. It was great working on a character like this because most of the time I'm just ... [long pause] ... just being myself. And yet I was trained as a character actor.
... Just playing an image?
Yeah. Leading Man in Suits. It was great for awhile, and I made a good living from it. But ... the clock was ticking. I wondered how I was going to get out of that box.
Where are you headed for the holidays?
Hawaii.. We have a little place out there. Kind of a refuge. My so it's just going to be Keely and the little ones.
Any Brosnan family traditions?
My wife dresses the tree with my children. It takes days.