'Cowboy Del Amor' is thought-provoking and hilarious

You know who you are.

You don't like documentaries. Even ones with penguins.

You need to go see "Cowboy Del Amor."

Emerging Pictures 'Cowboy del Amor' 4 out of 5 stars Director: Michele Ohayon Starring: Ivan Thompson Run time: 86 minutes Release date: Feb. 10, 2006 Rating: Not rated. On the web Official movie site [an error occurred while processing this directive]

Michele Ohayon's wildly entertaining film won the best-documentary prize at last year's South by Southwest Film Festival. Its subject is Ivan Thompson, an amiable ex-cowboy turned professional matchmaker for lonely American men and Mexican women.

Thompson is an unlikely relationships expert, but we learn as he makes matches and reflects on life and love that the man knows his stuff. "Cowboy" has a dilly of a main character, and it would be difficult to make Thompson less than entertaining. But Ohayon tells his story with unusual wit and compassion. The film sees the humor and irony in Thompson's business (his own union with a Mexican bride failed — twice), and the icky undercurrent (some unkind things are said about American women). While the film clearly cheerleads for Thompson and the couples he brings together, it doesn't shy away from the less-appealing parts of his character.

The most surprising thing about the flm is just how normal the Thompson-facilitated relationships — filled with all of the awkwardness and aching and miscommunication of more conventional unions — are despite their unusual provenance. Love is a business, Thompson tells us, and an odd one at that, but he and the film buy in wholeheartedly.