The Wrestler

I went to see this movie not knowing what to expect. About all I could get from the preview is that Mickey Rourke (Sin City, Once Upon a Time in Mexico) is a former 80’s wrestling superstar who is past his prime. On a side note I love that, that is all I got from the trailer in this age of seeing every good scene and sometime even the end of the movie in the preview (Quarantine). The sound track to this movie is a smorgasbord of good 1980’s hair metal that really put me in the frame of mind that this character is in fact still forever in the 80’s. The film was shot in a low-quality documentary style that follows Rourke around in a way that really gives the movie a sense of reality.

The Wrestler starts out with the height of Rourke’s character Randy “The Ram” Robinson’s career flowing past the screen in the form of old fliers and posters, and brings you to the current reality of his life as a has-been trying to desperately hold on to the lime light of his youth. He is making little to no money and being forced to work a day job unloading box’s at a super market to make ends meet. His whole world is turned on end when he has a near fatal heart attack after a wrestling match due in part to steroid use. After which he decides to retire and try to return to the life of a daughter he never saw grow up. Evan Rachel Wood (Across the Universe) plays Ram’s daughter and really conveys the anger of a person who’s father has only been there when it best suited him or when he needed help. Their interaction is beautifully horrible. She hates him in no uncertain terms, and he knows and accepts this for what it is; all he wants is a fresh start.

The love interest in the movie, played by Marisa Tomei ( Before the Devil Knows your Dead, Wild Hogs), is a slightly past her prime stripper who has been his only real connection with the world outside of wrestling. Tomei’s performance is great. She starts out keeping Ram at arms length but gives him preference because he is a regular that she knows will pay. Her character really develops over the movie as she realises how disconnected Ram really is and takes pity on him by trying to help in his quest to rekindle a relationship with his estranged daughter.

This movie really moved me and should not be watched if you aren’t ready to be depressed. The man portrayed in this film is never given a break and is beaten down by a world that has forgotten him and his nature. I found myself wanting to cheer him hoping he could pick up his life and move on but hating him for not being able to see that he is his own biggest problem.