The Wrestler (Darren Aronofsky, 2008)

[flyonthewall2983]

Not many were. The phenomena of death in pro wrestling was certainly ominous before it happened, but that hit the nail on the head of how disturbing the results can be when you're live or die by the business like Chris did. No one will ever know why he did what he did for sure, but I'm sure the loss of so many of his contemporaries (especially Eddie Guerrero) became part, if not essential to his breakdown.

[King Prendergast]

Mickey gave an unbelievable acceptance speech at the Independent Spirit Awards. He's on fire.

[flyonthewall2983]

I should, at this point, qualify why I loved this movie other than my love of professional wrestling. Above all, I thought it gave a good glimpse into blue-collar America, and what the lower-to-middle class struggles with day to day. It also treated that way of living with a kind of neutrality you could only otherwise see in documentaries. There's not a single moment of stereotypical behavior Hollywood has come to produce in that regard as well.

[exte]

Proposition 8 and Wrestlemania got the best of poor Rourke. Hopefully we'll have him marqueeing on the big screen for a long, long time to come.

[flyonthewall2983]

From thedigitalbits:

20th Century Fox has just announced the DVD and Blu-ray Disc release of Darren Aronofsky's The Wrestler on 4/21. Single-disc DVD and 2-disc Blu-ray editions will be available (SRP $29.98 and $39.99). The single-disc DVD will include the Within the Ring featurette and Bruce Springsteen's The Wrestler music video. To this, the Blu-ray will add the Wrestler Round Table featurette and a Digital Copy version of the film on the second disc.

[mfunk9786]

BDs getting exclusive bonus features make the saints cry.

[swo17]

Actually, the saints were early Blu-ray adapters, so they don't mind it really. 8-)

[kaujot]

Well, the Wrestler Round Table feature is online in various places.

[dx23]

And a digital copy is nothing to be proud of. I was hoping for a limited edition Randy the Ram figure.

[exte]

From thedigitalbits:

20th Century Fox has just announced the DVD and Blu-ray Disc release of Darren Aronofsky's The Wrestler on 4/21. Single-disc DVD and 2-disc Blu-ray editions will be available (SRP $29.98 and $39.99). The single-disc DVD will include the Within the Ring featurette and Bruce Springsteen's The Wrestler music video. To this, the Blu-ray will add the Wrestler Round Table featurette and a Digital Copy version of the film on the second disc.

For once the one disc edition is a no-brainer!

[accatone]

Watched this last night over -yes- 35 RUM from Claire Denise due to some weather issues… I think that was the first "hollywood" picture since Babel … i was almost equally disappointed with the only exception that with the Rourke film its at least localised to one place and not trying to tell the audience how the world is turnin' and how dumb it (the audience) is - however its for me human and social exploitation i.e. having a template of seriousness (form & content here) without paying back anything to the milieu and circumstances. The only interesting scene was the one where Rourke is "entering" his new job … unfortunatly the whole atmosphere was destroyed when the applauding background sound became so loud that at least every little jerk off who payed for that truly forgettable movie knows that this is is the return of Rocky Balboa…

[flyonthewall2983]

From thedigitalbits:

20th Century Fox has just announced the DVD and Blu-ray Disc release of Darren Aronofsky's The Wrestler on 4/21. Single-disc DVD and 2-disc Blu-ray editions will be available (SRP $29.98 and $39.99). The single-disc DVD will include the Within the Ring featurette and Bruce Springsteen's The Wrestler music video. To this, the Blu-ray will add the Wrestler Round Table featurette and a Digital Copy version of the film on the second disc.

For once the one disc edition is a no-brainer!

Yeah, I can't imagine this would turn out very well on blu-ray anyway.

[flyonthewall2983]

Assuming no one else watched, Mickey Rourke did get in the ring last night. He had a long stand-off with Jericho and he gave him a pretty weak pair of punches and that was it. One of many things from last night's show I could have done without.

[Antoine Doinel]

Rourke's insurers (and it seems, his agents) kept him from getting into the ring for an actual rumble at WrestleMania. Also, how old is Ric Flair now? 100?

[flyonthewall2983]

Rourke's insurers (and it seems, his agents) kept him from getting into the ring for an actual rumble at WrestleMania. Also, how old is Ric Flair now? 100?

That actually is quite hilarious because Ricky Steamboat (who stole the show in that particular match) retired 15 years because of a serious back injury. Later on, if I have this right, Lloyds of London wouldn't continue payment on his insurance if he got back in the ring.

Flair turned 60 in February. I read a funny comment on a Youtube video last night, he saw Flair at a hockey game and someone in the crowd was heckling him. He turned around, took off his shoe, held it up and said "this costs more than your double-wide, pal".

[Polybius]

He usually uses his watch as the prop in that bit.

He's been doing that Too Rich To Care What You Think routine for a long, long time, now. Doing it very well.

[jorencain]

Just a heads up for everyone - I bought a used copy of "The Wrestler" on DVD from Hollywood Video. At the bottom of the packaging it says "Rental Exclusive". Unbeknownst to me, this translates to "movie only and no extras." This issue has probably been discussed in other threads, and I don't know if this is what companies are doing these days. I just wanted to get the word out: don't buy this version if you want the extras.

[dx23]

Just a heads up for everyone - I bought a used copy of "The Wrestler" on DVD from Hollywood Video. At the bottom of the packaging it says "Rental Exclusive". Unbeknownst to me, this translates to "movie only and no extras." This issue has probably been discussed in other threads, and I don't know if this is what companies are doing these days. I just wanted to get the word out: don't buy this version if you want the extras.

The idiots at Fox decided to get rid of the extras for the rental versions of their DVDs. This cause a major flap with the slumdog Millionaire releases where these rental copies made their way to retailer packaging and customers had to call an 800 number to fix the thing.

[AnamorphicWidescreen]

Re-watched The Wrestler a while back, for only the second time....Wow. What a gut-wrenchingly powerful & depressing film. This is a really tough movie to get through, though obviously the performances are stellar. It was also interesting that even if you're not into wrestling it's not a requirement to enjoy the film; I have 0 interest in any type of wrestling & have always flipped past this whenever watching TV; but, this film was incredible!

Having grown up in the '80's, I enjoyed the homages to that time period re: the metal/hard rock music, the clothing store Randy & Cassidy went to, their conversation re: '80's music vs. '90's music, etc...Randy was obviously still living in that time period, since most of his glory days were from that decade. I was especially amused when he and that kid were playing an ancient '80's-era "Nintendo" wrestling game with sub-par graphics, and the kid commented, "This game is so old!" & then started talking about the latest much more advanced Call of Duty video games that Randy was obviously clueless about.

Prior to watching the film, I was always under the strong impression that all wrestling was 100% fake. However, this film was a real eye-opener since it was showing Randy intentionally cutting his forehead, the staple gun scene , the barbed wire, etc. Quite gruesome, especially since much of this was self-inflicted Obviously, this is based on things that really happen in this industry...

The scene when Randy intentionally cut his finger while working at the grocery store was quite horrible...obviously he was set off by the customer recognizing him as Randy "The Ram", something he was trying to put behind him at that point. The falling out with his daughter, the incident with the customer, the rejection by Cassidy, etc. all combined to make him do that final wrestling bout, even though he knew it may be his last one.

Re: the ending scene:

SpoilerShow

I was always under the impression that Randy died right as he performed that final "Ram Jam", since the scene cut to black suddenly (just as it had cut to black when he passed out the first time earlier in the film). He was told by the doctor to stop wrestling, he had spent a lifetime taking drugs to enhance his performance in the ring, etc. It seems fairly evident that he died - however, maybe it was left ambiguous so the film wouldn't end on a downer...

[Jakamarak]

I, too, love this movie.

Even though I feel sex workers tend to be overrepresented as film characters in general, I like Cassidy/Pam, the love interest portrayed in this film by Marisa Tomei. It's a wonderful thematic touch to have a couple in different respective professions that both depend on their bodies holding out.

Re: the ending scene:

SpoilerShow

My take is that whether Randy died during the film's final Ram Jam is superfluous. Before heading out for the final match, he basically tells Cassidy/Pam that, even knowing wrestling will kill him, it's all that makes sense to him. After learning he is too self-destructive to navigate interpersonal relationships outside the wrestling world, he has recommitted himself to the life of a professional wrestler, a course of action that will undoubtedly bring about his death, either directly after the final shot or in the very near future. Therefore, the final shot is tragic but quasi-triumphant (similar to the freeze frame that ends Thelma and Louise) as Randy will die doing what he loves.

[flyonthewall2983]

Prior to watching the film, I was always under the strong impression that all wrestling was 100% fake. However, this film was a real eye-opener since it was showing Randy intentionally cutting his forehead, the staple gun scene , the barbed wire, etc. Quite gruesome, especially since much of this was self-inflicted Obviously, this is based on things that really happen in this industry...

It is, though WWE lately has forbidden "blade jobs" (though some of them still happen) and will go as far as to stop the match if someone's bleeding. "Blading" is as old as wrestling itself, though barbed wire and staple guns are more relatively recent props of choice for hardcore matches. Mostly now in indie organizations that take after what ECW was though it comes off more like backyard wrestling. That kind of stuff is being phased out lately in favor of more athletic wrestling on that level, thanks to MMA and the popularity of Daniel Bryan who is a great technician.

[flyonthewall2983]

I found this video scrounging through YouTube tonight. It tells you everything you need to know about Randy's drive and frame of mind.

[flyonthewall2983]

Some of the costume design on this was done by none other than The Exotic Adrian Street, with help from his wife Linda. Very fascinating article about his career, and the impact he had on wrestling and pop culture.

[Gregory]

Zack Snyder Reveals His Pitch for a Female Version of ‘The Wrestler,’ Starring Amy Adams

It’s a kind of female version of ‘The Wrestler,’ about a midwestern housewife who happens to have a pretty good body, and starts to do some bodybuilding competitions, and then falls down a rabbit hole of steroids and hormones,” Snyder said. “It becomes a contest between fitness and family, and she loses her family because she’s spending all her money on diet supplements and drugs and trainers, and all of that stuff.

Has he seen The Wrestler?

[domino harvey]

I want to cast Amy Adams in the role she was born to play, Woman Who Happens to Have a Pretty Good Body