The Wrestler 2008 Film Review

Films about the art of pro wrestling are very hard to come by and when they are made there usually shlocky trash like Pro Wrestlers Vs Zombies for example. Yet we do have to really good films about pro wrestling that not alot of people mention any more like Fighting With My Family and the film that i'm going to be talking to you all about today and so then join me as I review the film that shows us a different side to the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Aunt May with the film in question being called simply "The Wrestler" enjoy.

The plot of this film is when he suffers a heart attack faded wrestling star Randy The Ram has get used to life outside of the ring but the pull to get back in the ring for last match could prove to hard to resist. Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film was in all honesty really good with this films plot really hitting home what life is like for alot of independent wrestlers as alot of them are working for very little money and are only performing for at best a few hundred people with this films plot showing us what life is like for a wrestler who is past his heyday and due to the fact that he took steroids in the eighties isn't in the best of health and yet the plot of this film is one that oddly works regardless of if you watch wrestling or not as if you do watch wrestling then the plot and the character will remind you of several wrestlers and managers who just want that one last bit of fame and if you don't like wrestling then the films plot still works as the plot doesn't really focus that much on the actual wrestling aspect pf the film with it being more of a character piece with it being helped by the fact that whilst this films plot isn't the strongest plot out there as there are times where it is hard to tell just what the main plot of the film is in the first place and yet when the film does focus on it's plot and does give it some love and attention that's when the film gets to be truly heartbreaking and beautiful to watch with the plot of this film also being really rather entertaining and as well as being really rather engaging as well in my freaking opinions anyways / at least. 

Starring in this film is Mickey Rourke as Robin Ramzinski / Randy "The Ram" Robinson and Marisa Tomei as Pam / Cassidy. Also starring in this film is Evan Rachel Wood as Stephanie Ramzinski , Mark Margolis as Lenny , Todd Barry as Wayne , Judah Friedlander as Scott Brumberg , former Pro Wrestler Ernest "The Cat" Miller as Bob / 'The Ayatollah' , Ajay Naidu as Medic , Wass Stevens as Nick Volpe and John D'Leo as Adam.

Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film was in all honesty really good. With all of this films actors turning in some really good performances in this film something which they really didn't have to do as a film about pro wrestling usually doesn't require good acting in it to make the film work and yet it's clear as day that this films director and producer Darren Aronofsky not only has a passion for wrestling so much so that they not filmed at real wrestling shows but also had other wrestlers feature in cameo roles but it's also clear as day that he really does know just how to get a good performance out of his actors as all of this films actors are just that good in this film with the films best actor being Mickey Rourke as he really is a delight to watch in this film as he does get just what it is that Randy is going through in the film infact there's a solid behind the scene video of the film where he says that he's just going to play this role as if he's playing himself and it is something that does work as there parallels between Randy's career and Mickey's career and with him pulling from his own experience it is something that des make his performance in this film feel oddly personal with the acting that's in this very film really being helped by the fact that the script for this film is just so good that all this films actors have to do is just say the lunes as they are written and a good performance will come out of them naturally which is something that really does help to raise the overall quality of the acting that's in this very film.

The one place where this film does undoubtedly excels in is it's characters as alot of the films characters are really well done. As all of this films main characters are all really important to the films plot as they all serve to help Randy out in someway shape or form be it Pam who serves as kind of a love interest for Randy and who helps get him back into the world when his world starts to crumble around him or his daughter who he tries to reconnect with despite him not being the best of dad to her growing him due to him always being on the road and yet none of those characters feel wasted as they very easily could have done with even the character of Randy himself despite him not really being the best of characters is still a really good and well thought out character in his own right as he struggles to recapture the fame that he once had and to hang on to the bit of fame that he has now and yet when he steps inside the ring he's basically a superhero who things that he can do anything and therefor when he does suffer his heart attack near the start of the film it does come as a shock to him as it makes him realise that he's not a superhero and that he is only mortal and yet it's because of this we do get to see that deep down he does have a caring side as he does try to make things right with his daughter and when he messes things up with Pam he does try to make things right with her as well as they are both people who are way past there prime in there respective professions and yet Randy is also really stubborn something which he is sadly unable to conquer as even tho the doctor said to him near the start of the film that if he does wrestle again it could cause him to have a fetal attack and yet because of the fact that he believes he's a superhero in the ring he does it anyway. 

It's clear as day that this film has such a love for pro wrestling as not only did they film at real wrestling events but they even have Mickey Rourke do alot of his own wrestling alot of the time. Heck the film even features alot of real life wrestlers in either smaller roles or cameo roles which was a nice little touch as it does add some authenticity to the film with the film giving us a good idea of what life is really like for a pro wrestler as all we the fans see is the glitz and glamour of it all but we don't get to see them struggling to walk after a brutal match nor do we get to see just what life is really like for them after they've left the arena and yet those are the things that this films does shine a light on granted it might be different for alot of the wrestlers on the WWE main roster but for alot of the wrestlers that are living paycheck to paycheck working these more smaller show this is what life is really like for them and they still do it anyway not for money because there never ever going to get paid enough for destroying there bodies but rather it's for the love of the game and it's for the love of the sport with that being something that is captured perfectly in this film as we do get to see Randy effectively be his most happiest when he's in the ring doing what he does best and yet contrast that with when he's working behind the deli counter just to make ends meat whilst he does start of happy there due to being worn down by everything that's going on in his life that happiness fades and his true love returns with Randy getting the itch to do that match that was offered to him near the start of the show with that being something that alot of other wrestlers get as well as we've seen Ric Flair call it quits several times now and yet he still comes back as much like Randy Ric Flair also has a deep a passionate love for the art of pro wrestling.

Whilst there are quite alot of things to like about this film there's also alot to hate about the film as well. Like for example why didn't the wrestling booker book Randy and The Ayatollah in a tag match ignoring the fact that he might not have known that randy was having heart issues at the time there both clearly past there time therefor it would have made more sense to book them in a tag match and pair them up with two other young guys who can still go in the ring as that way the booker would get to have there cake and eat it to by having these classic foes wrestle each other again twenty years later after there last classic bout and he could still put on a good show that would guarantee that all involved with the match would make it out OK and heck Randy himself even says near the start of the film that Bob doesn't really wrestle anymore so he wouldn't have been in the best of shapes in the first place let alone have shaken off that ring rust with both of them being way past there prime and therefor would have prone to making mistakes and yet for some odd reason the booker for this show thought that it made more sense to have them go at it one on one when all that does is bring down the match quality and remind the wrestling fans there that there heroes are now older and sadder this was something that was truly baffling as up until that point the film had been really good in giving us things that make sense either in the film or to the films characters and yet here they instead do the one thing that makes no sense whatsoever and while yes it could be argued that he would have made more money from booking them in a one on one fight rather then a tag team match which would be fair enough but given the size of the crowd there anyway and the fact it was taking place at a Ring Of Honor show they were always going to make money in the first place.

The other things that don't really work that well or don't work as well as they should have done is the relationship between Randy and his daughter and the relationship between Pam and Randy. As while the characters of Randy and Pam do get alot of focus and therefor there relationship is give alot more time in the sun it still oddly enough doesn't work as the two of them are always in their own way and therefor they never get the chance to progress there relationship to the next level with this being something that the makers of this film should have done as there relationship is a key part of the film and therefor we the audience need to buy into alot more then what we already do in the first place with the relationship between Randy and his daughter Stephanie as she's not in the film all that much and what little screen time that she does have she spends at least some of it yelling at Randy which is fait enough as he was meant to have been this really bad father to her and while seeing them try to patch things up was sweet it was something that does come a little to late in the film as there very next scene together is her yelling at him for him missing something of hers with this being something that could have been fixed if the characters did get to spend a little bit more screen time together as then the makers of this film really could have made us care for Stephanie as a character and while she's not that bad in the final film she can come across as being annoying due to the fact that she does spent alot of her screen time yelling at Randy which again is fair enough and with those extra scenes we could have gotten to see more scenes of them actively trying to patch up there relationship instead of having the one scene with them actually acting like a grown up father and daughter before having her going back to hating his guts.

Now then this film had / had an exact grand total running time of exactly one hour and forty nine minuets and nineteen seconds. Which is a perfectly solid running time for this film to have as this film is one that really doesn't require that long of a running time in order to fully tell it's story with the film even having the right amount of plot there to fully cover that amount of running time in the first place and while the film does use it's running time wisely in one respect it doesn't take the time that it really should have done to fully develop it's plot as alot of the time it was hard to say just what the plot of the film was even meant to be alot of the time with the film being alot more focused in showing us scenes that add nothing to the plot of the film like alot of the wrestling matches near the start of the film then it is in developing the films plot with this leaving us with a plot that is solid but could have been alot more better then what it is in the first place however this is something that doesn't effect the films characters as all of the films characters are perfectly well developed with the film giving the characters alot of time to fully show us just what it is that makes them good as characters with even the films wrestling scenes at the start of the film doing a good job of showing just what Randy is like when his world is fully intact and seeing him come to terms with the fact that he might get the chance to do the thing that he loves and seeing him interact with the characters on the outside world is really interesting to see with the film even showing Pam going from someone who doesn't date customers to being someone who pretty much loves Randy was really good to see as well but I really will admit that this film really does have some really good pacing to it tho.

So now then as this is a drama film that really does mean that I have to actually talk about the actual drama that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual drama that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film was in all honesty really good. With this films drama being really well handled as all of this films drama does feel very character driven and isn't there because of the fact that the film demands that there be some drama which it very easily could have done and yet because of the fact that the makers of this film have a love for telling good stories all of this films drama feels real and hits all the more harder then what it really should have done in the first place with the films best piece of drama being the films third act as around the mid point of the match Randy's heart starts to give out him and yet he still tries to carry on through to the match's planned finish with this culminating when Randy goes to hit his finishing move and the film just fades to black which is such a good way to have an open ending as now it means that there is a chance that Randy could have died during that match or there's a chance that he could have lived with either ending being totally valid but given how he was acting near the end of the film it is more feasible that he did die which if true would have been a very sad ending for a character that really did deserve a happy ending and while the rest of the film does have some really good drama in it it's that third act ending that really does leave you wondering what happened to this character and if the character really did make out of the film alive or not which makes it some world class drama in my freaking opinions anyways / at least.

Overall whilst Fighting With My Family does a good job of showing us what life is like for someone training to be a WWE wrestler this film does a really good job of showing what life is like for a wrestler who is past there prime and yet is still hooked on wrestling for people with this film being one that will appease both wrestling fans and none wrestling alike as it's just that good in my freaking opinions anyways / at least. Now then i've talked about all of the good and as well as all of the bad things that are in this very film in this very review and as such that really does mean that this very film really does earn itself a grand old score of exactly an 8.5 out of 10 from me.

Now then as for where I personally got all pf the images that I personally used in this very review well then boys and girls and as well as ladies and gentlemen I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review from IMP Awards . Com and Google Images. With my personally preferred website to use to get images really from this very film being the really great Google Images this is really because of the fact that really all of the images that I really indeed got and really used from Google Images are all really high quality really with all of the images that really are all and of course really currently up and on the really great and the really solid Google Images really are all being really fairly high in quality and as well as them all really being fairly high in definition.