FilmEdge.net reviews THE WRESTLER

The Wrestler Rated: R Running Time: 111 minutes Review by Joan Radell April 19, 2009 (4 stars)

It’s post-Oscar season, and that means the cinematic pickings are rather slim. It’s a great time to catch up on the past year’s award-winning films. THE WRESTLER was a small independent film that did not have a wide release until six weeks after its initial art-house showings; the film community was abuzz about the exceptional performance of Mickey Rourke in the title role. Could THE WRESTLER be the comeback vehicle for this headline making, long-troubled but talented actor, in the hands of director Darren Aronofsky? This character piece follows a few weeks in the life of professional wrestler Robin “Randy” Ramzinsky, known in the ring as The Ram. He’s twenty-five years past the peak of his career, physically and financially broke, working part-time as a stocker in the local supermarket. At one time, Randy The Ram’s matches sold out Madison Square Garden, but his star has waned and he wrestles now for a percentage of the gate at local VFW halls and community centers. He wistfully yearns for his glory days, adored by fans eager for his signature move, the Ram-Jam. He is a performer in search of an audience, living on past glory and painkillers.

When Randy has a few dollars in his pocket, he spends his nights at the local strip club, paying for private dances from an aging dancer Cassidy (Melissa Tomei) in hopes that she will think of him as more than a client.   We learn that Cassidy’s real name is Pam, and she is a single mom who desperately wants to get out of town to start a new life for herself and her son.   After a major health setback, Randy is cautioned by his doctors to quit steroids and retire, but a local promoter has arranged a comeback match between two old rivals: The Ram and The Ayatollah.   Randy lives in hope that this event will change his life and propel him forward to recapture some of his former glory.

Aronofsky filmed much of THE WRESTLER with a steadi-cam, lending a documentary air to the story.   The audience is literally walking along side Randy, watching him move through his days and nights.   This straightforward style is often brutal and graphic. Although Aronofsky makes it very clear that the wrestling matches are choreographed by the wrestlers ahead of time, the injuries taken in the ring are real.   These aging fighters know that their fans want bigger stunts that turn their fights into true blood-sport. The nudity of the pole dancers in the strip club is also presented unapologetically.   The audience quickly becomes inured to what would otherwise shock --these are hard-working people doing what they must to satisfy their public.   Whether they are selling blood or skin, it’s all about cash in hand.

Mickey Rourke gives the performance of a lifetime in THE WRESTLER.   Drawing from his own experience as a professional boxer, he dives into Randy Ramzinsky and takes on his skin, scars and all. His exhaustion is palpable.   Rourke is totally comfortable in this world of ersatz glamour, putting on his costume as a literal second skin of glitz.   Tomei’s Cassidy is vaguely ashamed of her job, with hopes pinned to a move to Trenton.   The audience aches for her, realizing that her high standards and strict ethical rules cannot erase her past.   Director Aronofsky brings these complex characters to life with grace and ease.   This is a fine film, meticulously crafted to look effortless--worthy of the tinsel town buzz surrounding it.   The dialog, written by Robert D. Siegel, is exceptional, and the soundtrack is an eardrum-thumping mix of classic metal rock.   The film closes with the Oscar-winning song The Wrestler written and performed expressly for the film by Bruce Springsteen. Set in the industrial region of North Jersey, the bleak backdrop of dying towns and abandoned shore resorts echo the character’s lives: their lives and dreams are also falling to ruin.

THE WRESTLER is a violent, dark film, and not for children. Die-hard wrestling fans might not appreciate the illusion-free portrayal of the always-fixed matches, but there are lots of cameos by former stars of the professional wrestling ring.   The tagline of THE WRESTLER is Love. Pain. Glory. and there is no better description to offer.   See this film.   Four of five stars for characters you won’t forget.