THE WRESTLER
OPTIMUM RELEASING
RELEASED 16 January 2009
Mickey Rourke was a shining star in the 80’s (Angel Heart, Nine and a Half Weeks) but his rebellious attitude and carefree manner were never going to endear him to the strict and clean Hollywood studio bosses, and he spent most of the resulting years in obscure genre movies and indulging his love of boxing and drinking. He made a comeback in 2005’s ‘Sin City’ as the plaster-covered hardman Marv, and with ‘The Wrestler’ he’s found a role that actually resembles the Mickey Rourke story. With Rourke winning top awards for his performance and with some high-profile movie roles lined up, this is a career resurrection on the John Travolta/Pulp Fiction scale.
Randy ‘The Ram’ Robinson made a name for himself in 80’s wrestling (even appearing in a videogame) but as the sport moved on, Randy was left behind and now gets gigs at poorly-attended local bouts. He doesn’t have enough money to pay his rent, he barely knows his daughter (Evan Rachel Wood), and the stripjoint holds his only friend, a stripper called Cassidy (Marisa Tomei). Struggling with his health, a rematch is booked on the 25th anniversary of his most famous bout versus ‘The Ayatollah’. Inbetween shifts at the supermarket, Randy attempts to pull something worthwhile out of the mess his life has become.
Director Daren Aronofsky (Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain) has made his most accessible and pleasing film yet. While I personally think ‘The Fountain’ is a minor classic, it’s obvious that audiences are really going to respond to this ‘Rocky’ style tale. Rourke really is as good as everybody says. With his 80’s metal rocker long blonde hairstyle and rubbery, bashed-up face, he looks perfect (!), but it’s his acting that is beyond perfect, drawn from someplace deep in his soul that might never have been found without this film. He drives the film completely, and Aronofsky simply follows him around with his roving camera in a documentary fashion. I’m not underestimating Aronofsky’s skills here because the superb acting in the film is down to him, and the although the direction seems simple, often the best direction is the type that involves you in the story so well that you don’t notice it. If you’re interested further in behind-the-scenes wrestling, look out for a wrestling documentary called ‘Beyond the Mat’ which features characters and situations similar to what is depicted here.
‘The Wrestler’ portrays a profession that is full of good people but unfortunately most of them go through literal pain and hardship and never get anywhere near the top. Randy does one fight with barbed wire, staples, and glass involved. He doesn’t like it anymore than you or I would, but he knows it looks great, and that’s all the performer in him cares about. It all looks frighteningly horrific!
‘The Wrestler’ is a film that starts out depressing, raises your hopes and your love for Randy ‘The Ram’, and gradually shuts all the doors of hope. It’s a brilliant performance from Rourke that is strengthened by an equally rejeuvenated Marisa Tomei.
FOUR OUT OF FIVE