Current mood: bummed
Sadly, this is the edited version since they decided they just needed to put a picture of Ernest Miller on the page with it. Hopefully, the Heretic Magazine will pick the original up, and perhaps let me go into the Gay Hollywood conspiracy to why Mickey Rourke was snubbed. Until then, here's the important stuff.
The Wrestler: A Film that Demands Recognition
Last February, the Academy Awards chose to overlook the motion picture of 2008 that had the most heart. This film was Darren Aronofsky’s Mickey Rourke vehicle "The Wrestler".
Randy “The Ram” Robinson's (Rourke) wrestling career seemed to have culminated 20 years-ago when he faced the Ayatollah at Madison Square Garden, but he still travels the northeastern sea board putting his body on the line. His life is not a comfortable one since the wrestling business has never been known for taking care of its own, and even as a draw, the grand pay day is never a guarantee. This leaves our protagonist struggling to pay his rent at the trailer park, unable to reconcile with his daughter (Evan Rachel Wood) who has disowned him, working at a supermarket for a manager who loves to demean him for what he was, and his only true friend being a stripper, Cassidy (Marisa Tomei), who does her best to distance herself from him to ensure a better future for her and her son.
For the fans that still pay to see him, The Ram has been willing to pay any price to do what he loves, until he suffers a heart attack after an “ultra violent” match. Now, he must determine how to get his life in order since it is more than likely he will never wrestle again.
Because the film is named after a character in it, many of the elements that make up the film are indeed overshadowed by the focus on Mickey Rourke’s performance. And rightfully so. This is the role Hollywood has wanted the actor to play since his reemergence to the scene in "Sin City". Rourke has had his own demons of living a normal life, and that is what the film is about. He had to pour his heart and soul into The Ram to make the character believable, and despite not doing all of his own stunts, those that he has to put himself through involve pain that is rarely, if ever, asked of an actor to endure. After this performance, it is very difficult to imagine watching a documentary about him. Randy Robinson is everything that is Mickey Rourke, so it has already been filmed.
This is why Aronofsky deserves vast amounts of praise. His fictitious film takes place in the most realistic world caught on film since "Borat". A side from the characters mentioned in the synopsis, everyone else is playing themselves, and unlike the comedy mentioned, this film is able to keep the reality from becoming part of the fiction. To further enhance the environment, Aronofsky has overachieved on the techniques pioneered by Lars von Trier, the director of "Europa" (a.k.a. "Zentropa"). He does not try to make any visually artistic statements with the use of constant close ups, but they give the film the feel of a documentary, and Robert D. Siegel’s screenplay allows the audience to feel like they are an active part of the film. A long with the billed actors’ performances, the writing and directing allow The Wrestler to genuinely feel alive.
Randy “The Ram” Robinson should be one of the most memorable characters of this decade in cinema, but with a lack of tangible recognition, Hollywood does not seem to care whether the efforts of the writer, director, and actor who created him are remembered. If one is a fan of fine films, it is imperative that they view The Wrestler.
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| ignaciorc.com |
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