Movie

The Wrestler (film): Rourke is incredible in this kinda true-to-life drama

Name: The Wrestler (film): Rourke is incredible in this kinda true-to-life drama
Item: The Wrestler
Author: @gooddream

Review by @gooddream · 2874d · of The Wrestler

Mickey Rourke is one of those actors that i have a lot of respect for. He doesn't just take every piece of trash movie that is offered to him and most of the films that he has been in have been pretty decent. He also decided to leave acting altogether to pursue and semi-professional boxing career where he was reasonably successful. I also have a lot of respect for the man because he works for animal rights and is an avid dog-lover.

Rourke plays the role of Randy "The Ram" Robinson, an aging professional wrestler who can't let go of the fame that he acquired in the 80's participating in the sport. Despite getting very few bookings and generally being broke, he spends all of his time and money on trying to make it back to the big show.

The reason that this is so stellar because this actually happens to a LOT of wrestling stars. They get addicted to the fame and when their popularity drops in the sport they experience a very difficult time rejoining "regular life." Many of these stars kill themselves, or because of how hard they worked in their glory days, suffer crippling injuries that affect them in a very negative fashion for the rest of their lives.

Although this has changed a lot in recent times, the wrestling circuits of the 80's was absolutely riddled with substance abuse. It is extremely difficult to get and maintain a physique like these guys have without resorting to some sort of chemical enhancement and it (was) quite common for the massive dudes to be constantly on a coctail of steroids and pain-killers at all times.

Randy "The Ram" Robinson is no exception to this, and although his character is completely fictional, the trials and tribulations that he faces certainly are not. The dude is broke and what little money he comes by he puts into maintaining his physique, dying his hair, going to tanning salons, and of course working out with the asssitance of pharmaceuticals.

Although Rourke has maintained a generally great physique throughout his life, I am still very impressed with how hard he trained in order to get in the shape necessary to play this role. He pulls off the representation of a pro wrestler excellently and I was delighted to find out that Rourke took the role as Nick Cage was actually going to be in it at first - urgh.... I can't even imagine that.

The movie was extremely well-received by critics and fans alike and while there were a few detractors from the actual pro-wrestling world who stated that it was an unfair representation of the wrestling world, most people enjoyed it. There are multiple documentaries that back up the overall image the film tries to portray and I think those nay-sayers are simply trying to uphold a cleain image that while true now, definitely wasn't in the 80's.

Although I didn't see this film in 2008 when it was released, I think it is likely one of the best films of that year. It won tons of awards but was snubbed at the Oscars as it was completely overshadowed by "Milk" and "Slumdog Millionaire," which are both excellent films - no complaints there.

Overall this movie is an emotional roller-coaster and well, if someone doesn't at least get misty-eyed while watching it I am convinced they don't have a soul.

9 / 10

Comments · 11

@aryaan(38)· 2872d
I can check it and follow your post. @aryaan
@bharat273(45)· 2873d
Hiii... Gooddream

Great Post again and again..
@newcastle(62)· 2873d
It was heartbreaking when he told his daughter ‘I just don’t want you to hate me’. It was also great how well he got along with the kids. You could tell how good hearted he was. Mickey Rourke is one of the only real men left in Hollywood. A true man who thinks for himself. He knows that he’s made so many mistakes, but he’s man enough to admit it. That’s too rare of a trait these days.
@blockchainherbal(40)· 2873d
This was a great film.
@aydogdy(58)· 2873d
The man is so arranged, it's the man, the women have different things, that he should always feel that he is needed, to whom or for what it does not matter. Feeling useless is unbearable. And often because of wrong priorities, offend, repel yourself from your relatives, relatives and friends, thus unconsciously burning all the bridges behind you, you naively believe that you, and that your attitude will be forever and you are in demand and happy, happy and selfish. Sooner or later time comes, or rather it passes, irrevocably and takes everything from you, everything with what you identified yourself, who you were. Your youth, your success is only in memories, and your skills and abilities are no longer relevant, no matter how hard you try. And what do you have left, instead of the beautiful and bright life where you walked, not looking back at those whom you left behind, and zealously believed that the end justifies the means, what? Helplessness, self-pity and fear, fear of full awareness that you are useless, you are alone, and that the worst, you have received your sight and realized that one was his whole life, so bright and beautiful, but devoid of love, sympathy and participation. And here you begin to convulsively cling to everything that can return you feeling, the very thing that the soul sings, and you feel yourself necessary, loved and adored and in general, by someone special and unique. That is, you seek backward, but the trouble is, you did not look back when you went ahead and did not remember the road back, and you do not find bridges, but you only come across charred remains, and there's no time to build new ones, and you do not know how to do it you do not, you can not, you are useless! Agony, throwing, then sobbing, then oblivion, you did not leave anything in this world, you were useless all your beautiful, bright, but completely empty life. And I remember that I came to watch a movie with a good mood, but left with a philosophical one. A rare effect of the picture, that the greater impression is not from the viewing process, but from what is then in the soul going on, and not for a couple of minutes, not even a couple of hours, the film made you think about a lot.
@cngrobler(43)· 2873d
This was a great movie indeed, especially because of Rourke, and yes I totally agree: Cage would've turned it into a Con-air good-bad hero spinoff.

You seem to have a huge respect for pro-wrestlers, @gooddream, and I admire that. Plus, you make good-to-read posts as well, so I will follow you :)
@ikar59(54)· 2873d
Rourke definitely fits because he looks the part, his effort to be in physical conditions to portrait the character was notorius
@bharat273(45)· 2873d
Hiii...gooddream

Great Post
@sunsethunter(73)· 2873d
Yea dude I have a lot of respect for rourke too! He’s the man! I must say I also really enjoyed this film, rourkes performace was amazing and made it so captivating and interesting, could have been a flop without him.

Surprisingly impressed with this film and I’m glad you gave it such a high rating - it deserves it!
@thefilmcritic(46)· 2874d
It is a nice movie, but for me something was missing. In the same genre "Warrior" (2011) was a better movie. I recommend.
@kwadjobonsu(61)· 2874d
Rourke's life and tumultuous past parallel Randy "The Ram" Robinson's own life so eerily close it becomes clear that no one else could have ever played this role. Darren Aronofsky's fourth feature is not only his most intimate but also his most accomplished to date. Aronofsky offers his most simplistic film both visually and narratively and ends up creating a film that has more depth and layers to it than any of his previous films.

Everything about Randy's life is in a state of decay. He retains a body that is on the verge of collapse, he hasn't seen his only daughter in years, financially he is exhausted, and the only thing that brings him solace in life is the same thing that threatens to end it. The most effective aspect of Randy's character is that no matter what mistakes he might have made in the past his sense of regret is so strong and genuine that it is impossible not to forgive him. As beaten down and alone as Randy might be he never looses his fighting spirit or sense of hope, no matter how little it may be. Regardless what hardship Randy is confronted with he never retreats and is admirably courageous even if being courageous might not be the smartest settlement.

For the general public who tend to find professional wrestling laughable and are quick to judge as a form of entertainment rather than a sport will find a deadly adversary in Aronofsky. The Wrestler shows that while outcomes of matches may be fixed the physical tolls these men take on their body are often more extreme and long lasting than most other "respectable" sports. The fact that Randy gives so much of himself and is ridiculed from everywhere to the trailer park he lives in to the job he keeps while not in the ring, makes us even more empathetic to the struggle Randy goes through to try and make it back on top. Overall The Wrestler is a constantly engaging and compelling character study with some of the finest acting, writing, directing I have seen in recent years. Oh and I forgot, the last shot will leave you speechless.