'Cowboy del Amor': Outsourced romance

It may not be an exclusively American trait to find a personal need and exploit it for profit, but that is how the matrimonial game works in the mercenary documentary, Cowboy del Amor.

Emerging Pictures 'Cowboy del Amor' B+ The verdict: Matchmaking across the border proves efficient in a drily humorous documentary. 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]

Ivan Thompson is a matchmaker who takes unattached, lonesome men south of the border to Mexico to find them brides. These eager new wives may truly find love or maybe simply a way to emigrate to the United States. In any event, neither partner seems be arguing with the pairing process, and neither is Ivan, who is $3,000 richer for the transaction.

So goes "the woman business," as Ivan puts it, an industry that he likens to "the horse business," and it is hard to deny the similarity.

Filmmaker Michele Ohayon focuses a skeptical eye and camera on this "cowboy cupid," following him through the process of flying down with client in tow to the sleepy town of Torreon, placing a personals ad in the local newspaper, then stationing himself at a nearby motel, where he will oversee — and occasionally referee — the cross-cultural courtship.

Cowboy del Amor has the feel of a reality-TV game show, as we get to know and perhaps root for these would-be mates. In particular, there is a soft-spoken trucker named Rick, who is seeking someone less demanding than the women at home, and shy Francis, a believer in love at first sight. Ivan mediates, claiming to sense when the match-up is right. This is ironic, considering his own failures in the romance department, about which we gradually learn. What may be intended as a cautionary tale probably manages to make Ivan famous and increase his business.