The Wrestler

The Wrestler, 2008
The Wrestler

I've intentionally put off watching this movie until now, know that really you can only watch so many older movies before you just need a break from it to watch something modern. It was also a movie that although I knew little about, I thought my Grandpa would really get into.

After watching the movie:

(Possible spoilers below)

I didn't realize it at the time, but the story behind getting this movie made has a bit of an underdog feel to it. Mickey Rourke and Bruce Springsteen didn't receive any money for their contributions to the film, and musician Axl Rose allowed the film makers to use the song "Sweet Child of Mine" without charge. For those who aren't familiar with the film making process and business end, budgeting money for music in post production is something that is often overlooked by first time film makers and can quickly add up depending on the length, popularity, and portion of songs used in a film. Sometime as popular as "Sweet Child of Mine" could have proven to be a big expense for these filmmakers.

What helped filmmakers was the willingness of WWE to participate in some of the fun surrounding the movie. Mickey Rourke was involved in Wrestle Mania that year, and had talked about challenging wrestler Chris Jerico to a match. Really, the only interesting part of this to me is that members from the WWE were willing to play along.

There was also this whole "anti-Iranian" controversy surrounding the movie. Which boils down to someone in Iran who got all upset because Randy breaks their flag in half. Well, really just the post it's on and not the flag and the attire worn by the 'bad guy.' I'm sorry Iran but it's nice to see someone else in American Cinematography being portrayed as the bad guys, because that whole Nazi thing is wearing thin. And let us not forget the United States is not up on Geography, and because we're fighting a war in the Middle East you're not going to be portrayed as heros in our films for at least twenty years. It's just not going to happen.

Final thoughts: Even though all the buzz I had heard about the story gave the impression that it's not really a pick me up movie, I was surprised the movie turned out to be as sad as it was. That doesn't take away from the fact that it's a great story of a washed up wrestler holding onto what once was from his prime. The most tragic part about the whole movie for me though was the relationship that suffered between Randy and his daughter. I'm a very family oriented person, so it bothers me a little when I see families that have been separated or torn apart. I don't regret watching the movie, I just don't think it's one I'm going to put on again soon. I prefer movies that are more uplifting. 

OFFICIAL COUNT: 157 DOWN 208 TO GO

Next up: Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf