Wrestler

Wrestler, The
$6.99
Ed Asner is awesome! This is kind of like a modern day Kevin James movie without ANY BIG NAME STAR HELP (Adam Sandler etc.)
The guy trys to put the whole local wrestling promotion together & there is a romantic twist !
wow! I ALMOST FORGOT ! DUSTY RHODES, SUPERSTAR BILLY GRAHAM, DICK MURDOCH: Great cameos! Wrestling action AWA OLD SCHOOL !
ANY DUSTY RHODES FAN MUST GET THIS FOR THE BAR FIGHT ALONE!

The Wrestler
$29.98
Have you ever seen "Requium For A Heaveyweight", the story of the over-the-hill, washed up pugilist, Mountain Rivera"? Anthony Quinn was superb in the lead role and the screenplay written by Rod Serling cuts right to the heart of the grim reality of the "sweet science" of pize fighting. How about "The Hustler" starring Paul Newman and Jackie Gleason? It's the story of "Fast" Eddie Felson, a man who's life outside the pool-room is so detatched and alienated that he can't relate to everyday situations without a bottle to drown his sorrow. And you may have seen "The Cincinnati Kid" with Steve McQueen and Edward G.Robinson. McQueen's character pushes his luck to the limits until he lays it all on the line in a high stakes porker game against the old pro, played by Edward G. Robinson. All of these films deal with characters who are compelled to play out their lifes in an arena, where danger and self distruction inevitably destory any hope of redemption.

"The Wrestler", starring Micky Rourke and Marisa Tomei is also a story of hope and redemption. The life of Randy "The Ram" Robinson, a fictional professional wrestler who is a composite of several real-life pro wrestlers. "The Ram", has toiled in the "square" ring putting his body through the abuses of broken bones, loss of hearing, numerous self inflicted cuts and the ravages of alcohol, drugs and anabolic steroids. When he suffers a near fatal heart attack, he is told that his career as a professional wrestler is over and that he risks it all should he continue to perform. Randy attempts to find a way to survive outside the ring and rebuild a relationship with his estranged daughter Stephanie, played by Evan Rachel Wood. Stephanie represents the colatteral damage wrought on by the war Randy has waged within the ring and within himself. But like the aforementioned characters, Mountain Rivera, "Fast" Eddie Felson and "The Cincinnati Kid", his life away from the areana is void of any traces of humanity. His failure to find work in mundane endevors, like working at a supermarket deli counter, render him deeper into dispair and depression. And his inability to reconnect with Stephanie, except for a breif moment, destorys any hope he may have had at redemption.

Randy seeks solace at the local strip club and befriends the lonely and misbegotten stripper "Cassidy" played by Marisa Tomei. They develop a relationship based upon mutual feelings of failure and alienation. And so when Randy decides to make a comeback, it is Cassidy who implores him not to risk it all. "I'm here for you", she pleads before he enters the ring. But Randy knows he can't escape his fate. He is already under the spell of the roar of the crowd and the intensity of the danger the lies ahead. He turns to her and says "I have to. It's the only place where I don't get hurt".

The gritty realism and the superlative acting by Rourke, Tomei and Wood make you almost believe that you are watching a real life documentry and not a Hollywood movie. The Wrestler is a finely crafted film that will enlighten most viewers as to the dangers of professional wrestling. But more than that it is a story that will leave you feeling the agonizing pain of it's all too real characters and their struggle to redeam their pitiful and irreparably damaged lives.

The Wrestler [Blu-ray]
$39.99
Have you ever seen "Requium For A Heaveyweight", the story of the over-the-hill, washed up pugilist, Mountain Rivera"? Anthony Quinn was superb in the lead role and the screenplay written by Rod Serling cuts right to the heart of the grim reality of the "sweet science" of pize fighting. How about "The Hustler" starring Paul Newman and Jackie Gleason? It's the story of "Fast" Eddie Felson, a man who's life outside the pool-room is so detatched and alienated that he can't relate to everyday situations without a bottle to drown his sorrow. And you may have seen "The Cincinnati Kid" with Steve McQueen and Edward G.Robinson. McQueen's character pushes his luck to the limits until he lays it all on the line in a high stakes porker game against the old pro, played by Edward G. Robinson. All of these films deal with characters who are compelled to play out their lifes in an arena, where danger and self distruction inevitably destory any hope of redemption.

"The Wrestler", starring Micky Rourke and Marisa Tomei is also a story of hope and redemption. The life of Randy "The Ram" Robinson, a fictional professional wrestler who is a composite of several real-life pro wrestlers. "The Ram", has toiled in the "square" ring putting his body through the abuses of broken bones, loss of hearing, numerous self inflicted cuts and the ravages of alcohol, drugs and anabolic steroids. When he suffers a near fatal heart attack, he is told that his career as a professional wrestler is over and that he risks it all should he continue to perform. Randy attempts to find a way to survive outside the ring and rebuild a relationship with his estranged daughter Stephanie, played by Evan Rachel Wood. Stephanie represents the colatteral damage wrought on by the war Randy has waged within the ring and within himself. But like the aforementioned characters, Mountain Rivera, "Fast" Eddie Felson and "The Cincinnati Kid", his life away from the areana is void of any traces of humanity. His failure to find work in mundane endevors, like working at a supermarket deli counter, render him deeper into dispair and depression. And his inability to reconnect with Stephanie, except for a breif moment, destorys any hope he may have had at redemption.

Randy seeks solace at the local strip club and befriends the lonely and misbegotten stripper "Cassidy" played by Marisa Tomei. They develop a relationship based upon mutual feelings of failure and alienation. And so when Randy decides to make a comeback, it is Cassidy who implores him not to risk it all. "I'm here for you", she pleads before he enters the ring. But Randy knows he can't escape his fate. He is already under the spell of the roar of the crowd and the intensity of the danger the lies ahead. He turns to her and says "I have to. It's the only place where I don't get hurt".

The gritty realism and the superlative acting by Rourke, Tomei and Wood make you almost believe that you are watching a real life documentry and not a Hollywood movie. The Wrestler is a finely crafted film that will enlighten most viewers as to the dangers of professional wrestling. But more than that it is a story that will leave you feeling the agonizing pain of it's all too real characters and their struggle to redeam their pitiful and irreparably damaged lives.

Slumdog Millionaire
$29.98
I heard a lot of good things about Slumdog Millionaire. It also made me excited to know AR Rahman did the soundtrack. Despite the fact the film was not well received in India, I was going to give it the benefit of the doubt.


Unfortunately, I could actually see why this film was not well received in India.

The film portrayed mostly poor people in India. In addition, they made it seem like the majority of the officers were corrupt. I tried very hard to not let these quirks get in the way of the plot. After all, in any poor neighborhood - including places in the United States - these things are bound to happen. Stress levels are higher, there generally is less reliable help from authority, and so forth. This can safely be generalized to most places in the world where there is a low-income neighborhood and a high crime rate. I have not done any research on the statistics in Bombay/Mumbhai, but despite the overemphasis on poor people in India, I was willing to put this reservation to the side. I even bit my tongue when I saw the Muslim fanatics attack people and saw the main character make a comment about blaming Rama and Allah for his mother's death. (I will say this, though: the inter-caste violence is generally more infrequent than people in the West make it out to be and even then, it is usually reserved to the rural population. In almost any society, social norms are more rigidly enforced when you get away from the more populated and diverse areas.)

What really turned me off was the scene when little Jamal was conning tourists, only for the police to publicly beat him. Some cops might abuse their authority, but I really do not think the developed parts of India would have this happen a lot. Following this was the young Jamal made the comment to the tourists, "You wanted to see what the REAL India is REALLY like?" After this comment more or less helped me make my decision on the degree of stereotyping. The tourist responded via giving cash to Jamal and saying, "This is how the real America is like!" I may have not quoted the scene word for word, but this is how the scene went. This part of the dialogue really made it obvious that the script writer and film maker over-stereotyped. It also shows a lack of consideration for the non-profit institutions in India that actually -do- help the poor. But like America, people in other countries cannot help -all- of their population.

This major "turn off" aside, the plot was interesting and I am always up for something dealing with the gray aspect of society. It really shows what could happen to the homeless when people do not pay any attention to them. Furthermore, I think the main characters show how far people will go to survive when put under the circumstances many homeless and poor people endure in the city slums. I think someone already said the only unlikely thing that happened was Jamal becoming a millionaire...despite this, almost everything else seemed a pretty accurate portrayal of this environment.


Sincerely,
Arya Nightingale