Directed by Darren Aronofsky (‘Pi’ and ‘Requiem For A Dream’) a film about wrestling, but as with all the best sports films it’s not about the sport as much as it is about the people involved. In this case Mickey Rourke plays Randy ‘The Ram’ Robinson, a WWF-style wrestler who peaked around 20 years ago (in the 80′s). The Ram is still wrestling at the weekends to a devout (but small) crowd of devoted fans, but has to work in the local Supermarket during the week to make ends meet.

Darren Aronofsky has manged to make a film that feels completely like an 80′s film, not just because of the rock soundtrack or the subject matter or Mickey Rourke’s 80′s long hair, but overall the look and feel of the film is spot on.

Mickey Rourke gives a great and empathetic performance as the aging sportsman still grinding away and early on in the film suffers a health scare that throws his future in the ring into turmoil and makes him step back and re-examine his life. That life also contains Cassidy, an aging stripper in obviously similar circumstances and his daughter Stephanie. One scene sees The Ram psyching himself up for the deli counter at the supermarket and the walk out there draws obvious parallels with him emerging from backstage at a fight – it’s a great scene.

Midway through the film I feared it was just turning into a formulaic remake of Rocky or something like that, but I am happy to report that it didn’t at all. The plot is an interesting one and is given a proper ending, but one that leaves it just open enough for a bit of self-interpretation. A very good film.

4 on 5

Info:
Director: Daren Aronofsky
Starring: Mickey Rourke, Marisa Tomei, Rachel Evan Wood
UK Release: 16 January 2009

Non aggiungo altro della trama…

Personalmente ho trovato il film lento ma è un ritmo che non annoia e, anzi, aggiunge spessore e significato al dualismo del film: perdente/vincente – presente/passato.
Il nostro vive e continua a vivere nel ricordo di quello che era cercando di perpetrarsi in una sorta di costruzione esterna che non coincide con il profondo del proprio essere (l’anima) ormai svilita dal proprio fallimento.
Se nella vita quotidiana il wrestler diventa un uomo comune senza soddisfazioni e con molte pecche caratteriali e di comportamento, sul ring è ancora in parte vivo e sofferente e proprio il dolore rappresenta la forza che lo tiene in vita. Solo che anche nel ring non ha più futuro.
Anche Cassidy, spogliarellista 40enne con figlio a carico rappresenta una perdente: lei non può nemmeno dire di avere almeno un lavoro che le abbia dato soddisfazioni come al wrestler e un cambio di vita potrebbe trasformarne l’esistenza in qualcosa di meglio ma, anche lei come The Ram non riesce a creare il proprio destino e ne è invece succube.

In qualche punto il film mi ha ricordato Rocky Balboa, dove Stallone rappresenta un uomo che è stato un idolo e da “vecchio” racconta, in una sorta di eterno nostalgico revival, ai clienti del proprio ristorante com’era stare sul ring. Qui Randy/Rourke si siede in conventions squallide firmando autografi a pagamento.

Il film è drammatico ed emozionante e molto deve al suo protagonista che – in qualche modo – ha una vita che assomiglia a quella del personaggio (ascesa e caduta degli dei).
Molto bravi quindi Mickey Rourke ed un’appassita (per il ruolo) e sempre bella Marisa Tomei.

Voto: 7.5 Per riflettere
Ciao, J

Not Jimi Hendrix, but close

After all, live music is a bit of a rarity these days. And will become rarer still thanks to ex-Culture Secretary Andy Burnham. But mostly we stayed because of the guitarist. When he played, it was if Jimi Hendrix himself had come back from the dead,  wandered druggily into the pub (releasing a few parakeets on the way), and started riffing on a handily-placed guitar. When he didn’t play it was still a bit like some of those things but without the music, as he did bear a slight passing resemblance to the late axe-wielder. He sang well, too.

The rest of the band – drummer, bassist and a guy who looked like he was a customer who happened to have a harmonica on him – were competent but not competitive. In other words, they knew who had the real talent. My mate, who plays guitar, said at one point “He’s got his eyes closed in Hendrix”. Eyes closed in Hendrix? Is that some Coen brothers film? What he was remarking on was the fact that this guy was so proficient, he could play long stretches of coruscating guitar work without opening his eyes. Apparently that’s quite hard.

The crowd lapped it up. It’s a studenty pub, The Ram, and before long the crazy kids were dancing about in a drink-fuelled frenzy, all flailing limbs and tossed hair. I think it was that way round. One young lady had an unusual dance routine that even had the guitarist looking a little perplexed.

This calls for a caption contest

Notice how the pub helpfully leaves Sky Sports on while the band is performing.

Anyway, the guitarist’s name is Alex Anthony and he’s at The Ram every Wednesday, if you’re in the area. In fact he’s there every Wednesday even if you aren’t.

We come in peace

We’re from the countryside so we don’t understand all this city nonsense. Back where we came from, the biggest excitement is who has laid the best egg each day. Still, CJS and that foot feathered daemon, Bruno, say we have to post so we decided to give it a go together.

None of these new chickens look like us. We have fur and they have feathers and talk about how ‘hot’ their leg bands

Hangin' with the new birds

look.

Still, we like our new home. The big chickens treat us differently to our last big chickens. They were nice enough, but the new ones have told us about worms and they stroke our heads which makes us sleepy.

They say we have names now too – I’m called Bessie and she’s The Ram. I think we will be alright here as long as the others stop pecking us and bossing us around. We could certainly get used to this life.

Conference with Bruno

Err, is it just me or are there less chickens living here now?

On Friday, I was gazing longingly at some new vegetables the big chickens had planted for us and I fell asleep. When I woke up, the boys had gone.

Bruno was moaning about it (as usual), thinking it was her fault for complaining about them. Me, I’m not too bothered – more food for me to eat.

Then, at the end of the day, these two fluffy strangers appeared. One of them was kind of mean to me but then CJS sorted them out. Now I think they’re alright and Oscar seems to have made friends with them too.

The cloud

One of them looks like a cloud and says The Big Chickens call her Bessie and the other one is called The Ram. I like the cloud the best because she doesn’t like meal worms and gives hers to me.

I’ll let you know if they go weird or anything.

You remember Friday? It was beautiful out, so Eddie’s naturally looked like the Jersey Shore. Yeah? Yeah. Just setting the scene. So this mystery kid was in the Caf and sees the Fordham Ram walk in. The kid runs up to the Ram and punches him, knocking the Ram to the ground and dislodging his big, furry, fake head. Burn.

But it doesn’t end there. Sometimes drunken/high idiots (ourselves included) forget that when you hit someone they may or may not attempt to retaliate. Especially when that person is a large man in a ram costume. The Ram chased the puncher onto Eddie’s Parade and socked him in the face. (God I wish I had done my drinking outdoors on Friday afternoon.) Hundreds of Fordham babes and bros dropped their frisbees and watched on in horror (read: they were lovin’ it and you know it).

John Carroll, Fordham’s Director of Security, along with many other security workers caught up with the two fighting bros. Eventually both students were taken to the hospital (the puncher, reportedly, put up a bit of a stink though).

Comment if you were there, y’alls.

When you first look at these 3 signs they seem to have nothing in common, Aries likes to get things going, Taurus would rather keep them as they are, and Gemini likes to talk about them. They do have 1 thing in common. Like their season spring, the season of new growth & new life, these three signs are all about creating the new. They are the ones out there making things happen. And now a little about each sign.

Aries: The Ram (March 21 to April 20)

Aries is the first sign on the zodiac, and being an Aries myself, let me tell you it’s no accident that we are first. Hell, if we weren’t first we would just have to rearrange things & make us first! Aries are pioneers, daredevils, we are the people that never say “No”. Being the first cardinal sign, Rams are unstoppable. We want to be were the action is and you we will do whatever we can to be the first ones there. Just a little warning, stay out of an Aries way; or else you will get run down. No on has a stronger will than an Aries.

Aries is the only fire sign with the cardinal quality, this is why Aries like to start things but never finish them. Aries see starting of something new as “fun” but when it comes to finishing it, it is no longer “fun”, so the Aries will pass it off to someone else. Other cardinal signs are, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn, these signs start of each season and are the signs of beginnings. More on these signs later.

Element — Fire

Quality — Cardinal

Energy — Yang

Rulers — Mars & Pluto

Color — Red

Gem — Diamond

Anatomy — Head & Face

Keywords — Pioneering, Leading, New Beginnings

Archtypes — Aragorn, Tomb Raider’s Lara Croft, Luke Skywalker, Neo from The Matrix, the cowboy of the American West.

Celeb Rams — Norah Jones, Martain Lawrence, Mariah Carey, Reese Witherspoon, Russell Crowe, Sarah Jessica Parker, David Letterman, Tennessee Williams, Vincent van Gogh

Tarot Suit — Wands

Tarot Major Arcana card — 0 The Fool, innocence and openness

Taurus: The Bull (April 20 – May 21)

Taurus’ is know consistent, methodical and dedicated. They are just what any project needs to grow & reach its full potential. The Bull likes to now the plan before hand and they are the ones to stick to it. Don’t surprise a bull.

Being a fixed Earth sign Taurus is the most passive of the zodiac. They have all there feet planted firmly on the ground. There calmness & dependability makes them someone you can count on. Bulls live be the rule, if it’s not broken, don’t fix it. They can be conservative and cautious & will stick with what works.

Because Bull’s have a strong connection to the Earth the are usually materially wealthy, this wealth is found in the cozy home that they create. You are very likely to find a Bull sitting in their favorite chair, reading their favorite book/paper, perfectly content that everything is just as it is.

Bull’s desire for harmony goes beyond themselves. They will also seek harmony with everything on Earth. They love to see things grow; gardens, people, situations, and money. Bulls are more likely to live in the country, by chance that a Bull lives in the city, they will be surround themselves with plants. Bulls like silence and are often people of a few words. Bulls are the most physical of the signs, this is because they know everything through their body. The is due to their rule by Venus, the ruler of the senses.

Element — Earth

Quality — Fixed

Energy — Yin

Ruler — Venus

Color — Green

Gem — Emerald

Anatomy Neck & Throat

Keywords — Ownership, Dependability, Sensuality

Archtypes — Marmie from Little Women, Dustin Hoffman’s character in Kramer vs. Kramer, Aphrodite, Osiris

Celeb Bulls — Jay Leno, Jack Nicholson, Michelle Pfeiffer, George Clooney, U2′s Bono, Andie MacDowell, George Lucas

Tarot suit — Pentacles

Tarot Major Arcana card — 5 The Hierophant, steadfast, conformity

Gemini: The Twins (May 21 — June 22)

Gemini is like two people sharing one body. They often appear as they are going in two directions at once. Twins will sometimes refer to themselves as “we”. They are always thinking and observing, twins never miss or forget a thing. They will leave you in the dust. Be sure to pay attention to Twins, because the ALWAYS have something to say.

Gemini is a mutable sign, this signifies change; a yang sign, signifying motion and an Air sign, which signifies the mind. Twins are always in motion, always searching for knowledge. They try to lives, as many lives as they can. Gemini is often called a dualistic sign. Twins are are simple. They are very curious, find out what the want to now & moving on to the next.

Element — Air

Quality — Mutable

Energy — Yang

Ruler — Mercury

Color — Yellow

Gem — Agate

Anatomy — Hands, Arms, Shoulders, Lungs

Keywords — Mentality, Communication, Versatility

Archtypes — Hermione of Harry Potter, Castor and Pollux, Coyote the Trickster, Gollum

Celeb Twins — George H. W. Bush, Marilyn Monroe, Clint Eastwood, Elizabeth Hurley, Rupert Everett, Mike Myers, Joseph Fiennes, Bob Dylan, Donald Trump, Angelina Jolie

Tarot Suit — Swords

Tarot Major Arcana card — 6 The Lovers, options and choices

Be sure to come back tomorrow to find out how the Spring Signs do when they are in love.

If you have any questions feel free to email us at miraclesnmagic@comcast.net.

Antes de qualquer outro comentário sobre The Wrestler, é imprescindível dizer o quanto difícil é acreditar que este seja um filme do mesmo diretor do grotesco Requiem for a Dream – não obstante durante grande parte da película, tudo também ter estado a um passo de desandar.  Passo esse que Aronofsky, felizmente, não deu. Contar a história de um lutador, vinte anos depois de seu auge e com graves problemas de saúde e familiares, poderia complicar a vida de muito cineasta. É uma história que já foi muito contada. Já batida demais. Tem muita semelhança até com a de Rocky Balboa, distribuida ao longo dos seis filmes. Pois é, mas dessa vez Aronofsky se saiu bem. Impressionantemente bem. Ele não inventou. E me surpreendeu como ele é bom em não inventar.  Fez o feijão-com-arroz com muita classe e até deu pra ver o talento que ele  gosta de esconder por trás daquela pirotecnia bizarra. Conduzindo muito bem o roteiro mais-ou-menos ele conseguiu desviar a atenção de todos esses pequenos dramas, já mais que esgotados, para focar a luta em si; a paixão pela luta. Contando com grandes atuações – dessa vez, sim, o elenco foi bem escalado –, sobretudo do desfigurado, mas ainda brilhante, Mickey Rourke, esse filme passa muito mais credibilidade.

Aronofsky não se preocupou em contar o que afastou Randy “The Ram” Robinson de sua filha, e também não entrou em detalhes sobre o seu problema cardíaco. Na frustrada busca do lutador pela redenção e pela sobrevivência – que culmina na bela cena final, quando Randy opta por terminar onde se sentia melhor e mais querido, uma vez que não fazia sentido a vida fora dos ringues – o diretor foca em seu protagonista, só nele – e vai fundo, junto a um inspiradíssimo Mickey Rourke. E Aronofsky teve coragem também – para realizar seu grand finale, em que os problemas que todos esperavam que fossem resolvidos não são. Ou melhor, até são, mas não da maneira como se esperava. Ele deixa que o próprio lutador escolha seu destino. Daí, se torna compreensível sua opção. Aronofsky foi simples e acertou em cheio. Tomara que aprenda.

Non è facile trovare la porta corretta per entrare in questo film, le immagini si accavallano le une alle altre, ed è come un caleidoscopio frammentato nel quale ogni dettaglio, ogni frase assumono un ruolo fondamentale ed imprescindibile per comprendere davvero il personaggio. Non è nemmeno possibile collocare cronologicamente la vicenda, per quanto si svolga tutto ai giorni nostri, Randy Robinson (Mickey Rourke) è in realtà un fantasma del passato, uno scarto degli anni ’80, rimasto ancorato al suo decennio, alla sua epoca, al suo momento. Ma il mondo non aspetta, né tantomeno rallenta, e quindi i tempi di comprensione del film non sono più i nostri, ma quelli di un vecchio rimasto ai margini della storia senza nemmeno essersene reso conto, un ariete (The Ram, questo il nome da battaglia di Randy) da tempo sacrificato all’altare del successo, che ancora spera, come una fenice, di risorgere dalle proprie ceneri. Non è però solo il ring a non essere più quello di vent’anni prima, è il mondo che ormai, semplicemente, ha dimenticato l’Ariete: non siamo più ai tempi dei Guns N’ Roses, degli AC/DC, e nemmeno del Nintendo a 8 bit col quale spera di intrattenere i suoi ultimi fan, i ragazzini del vicinato… è di dettagli come questi, di fotografie sparse e vecchi articoli di giornale che è ovattato tutto il film, cosicché, senza rendercene conto, siamo direttamente proiettati all’interno della vita di un vecchio wrestler, non più come semplici spettatori simpatizzanti, ma altrettanto isolati dalla realtà circostante, in grado quindi di provare la più sincera compassione nei suoi confronti, intesa proprio come sofferta partecipazione ai dolori altrui [De Mauro]. Le prime lunghe carellate con le quali si apre la pellicola ce lo mostrano costantemente di schiena, un gigante dalle spalle grosse che oscura tutto il campo, e la telecamera che lo segue pedantemente da vicino non può scoprire un solo dettaglio, né del personaggio né delle sue intenzioni. Ci è estraneo, non lo conosciamo e non ne comprendiamo le scelte. È solo due ore più tardi, lasciata la sala, che capiamo quanto ci siamo in realtà legati a questo pezzo di carne maciullata, alla sua vita disastrata, a quella perdizione figlia di ottusità oltre che di sfortuna.

Un’annotazione a parte va poi fatta per il wrestling, sul quale è stato proprio questo film a farmi riflettere. È interessante tracciare un parallelo tra il lottatore e la lotta, tra quello che succede sul ring e la vita all’esterno. Non so se si possa definire propriamente come uno sport, vista l’alta componente teatrale che incorpora: è tutto talmente falso da sapere già a priori chi vincerà l’incontro, e quei mostri iperpalestrati pronti a massacrarsi sono in realtà candidi agnellini che si salutano e sostengano fuori dal palco. È tutto così vero che le botte preconfezionate arrivano a fare veramente male, il filo spinato e le spillatrici graffiano orrendamente la carne, ed il sangue che sgorga è reale come la terra. Ciò che conta in realtà non è la componente (alta) di premeditazione e orchestrazione nei riguardi dell’incontro, ma il primitivo, genuino entusiasmo che lega i due avversari ed il pubblico assediante il ring, quello sì reale e sì spontaneo. Come nella commedia dell’arte, ogni attore conosce a memoria la propria parte, ricorda le componenti fondamentali del canovaccio e non esce dal proprio ruolo, ma all’interno di esso si muove e improvvisa come più gli piace, con l’unico paletto di portare alla fine la storia al suo scontato epilogo. Ed il wrestling è proprio questo, il teatro popolare più vecchio del mondo, l’atavica lotta tra Bene e Male, dove su macchinazioni, insulti, botte da orbi, sotterfugi e riscosse, resta la confortante certezza che alla fine, nonostante tutto, a trionfare sarà lui, il buono, ed assieme a lui tutti noi.

È in questo mondo che il nostro The Ram, braccato dalla vita, cerca riparo. E’ su quel palco dove sa di essere amato, nell’abbraccio virtuale di un pubblico che non conosce, ma che lo ha sorretto per tutta la vita, che trova quel conforto che gli è mancato, scivolato via come sabbia tra le dita, nel rapporto mancato con una figlia fino all’ultimo trascurata ed ignorata, ed una spogliarellista in là con gli anni, ultima delusione a riprova che i sentimenti ai quali tentiamo sempre d’ancorarci finiscono solo per farci male. In tanti l’hanno deriso, in tanti non hanno avuto fiducia in lui, e tanto ha lui stesso sbagliato, a sua volta ferito e fatto male alle persone che più gli volevano bene. Ma questo è solo Randy Robinson: un padre assente, un uomo mediocre, il commesso dietro al bancone di un supermercato, il fallito che non riconosce la propria miseria. Questo è Randy Robinson, non è The Ram. L’Ariete è l’eroe dei poster, l’Ariete è la stella più fulgida, la candela che brucia dai due lati, la forza di rialzarsi sempre, di vincere ogni ostacolo, di rompere ogni barriera, sconfiggere chiunque si stagli sul suo percorso. L’Ariete è tutto ciò che vorremmo essere, e che non avremo mai la forza di raggiungere. Il salto nel vuoto che compie Mickey Rourke alla fine del film rappresenta ciò: l’abbandono delle spoglie mortali di un Randy Robinson qualunque, per entrare, per sempre, nella Leggenda.

The Wrestler è questo, e tanto, tanto altro. Ve lo consiglio con tutto il cuore, soprattutto agli scettici: non ve ne pentirete.

There’s a parallel story of Cassidy (Marissa Tomei) who is an exotic strip dancer and is the life of her strip club. She, too, is getting old and slowly loosing out on her popularity in the club but unlike Randy, she has planned her retirement and finances well. Randy is her regular customer and he really enjoys her company. They share a complex relationship as Cassidy strictly follows the rule ‘don’t get involved with a customer’.

In a celebrated wrestling match Randy gives a great performance (probably the best ever in the wrestling history). But an unfortunate heart attack after the performance costs Randy his wrestling career. Randy retires from the professional wrestling and goes through the same trauma that most retired wrestlers do.

There are some breathtaking scenes in the movie that have been shot with a lot of emotions and power packed performance of the actors. There is one scene when retired Randy is getting ready to start his new job in a store and moves towards the service counter from the warehouse. Everything looks exactly like the backstage of the wrestling ring. He can feel the same energy and can also hear his fans cheer his name as he enters the service counter.

Randy is a lonely guy who has no one to share his feelings with. The guy who is used to thousands of his fans cheering him is suddenly an unknown figure with no friend and family. Randy is not able to go through this transition and decides to go back to where he belongs, ‘The Wrestling Ring’.

I just want to say to you all tonight I’m very grateful to be here. A lot of people told me that I’d never wrestle again and that’s all I do. You know, if you live hard and play hard and you burn the candle at both ends, you pay the price for it. You know in this life you can loose everything you love, everything that loves you. Now I don’t hear as good as I used to and I forget stuff and I aint as pretty as I used to be but god damn it I’m still standing here and I’m The Ram. As times goes by, as times goes by, they say “he’s washed up”, “he’s finished” , “he’s a loser”, “he’s all through”. You know what? The only one that’s going to tell me when I’m through doing my thing is you people here. 

Best Movie Speech Ever. No wonder Mickey helped write it.

The Wrestler

Am văzut în sfârşit “The Wrestler”, după vreo două luni de încercări. Noroc cu “No Way Out” şi finalul neprevăzut, care mi-a deschis apetitul pentru filmul care face obiectul acestui post (despre NwO, urmează).

“The Wrestler” se vrea a fi un film despre lumea wrestlingului profesionist american, dar ajunge să fie mai mult decât atât. Pentru că, pe lângă evenimentele fictive care relatează cu o dureroasă exactitate realitatea cu care s-au confruntat şi se confruntă wrestlerii, este un film despre viaţă şi despre felul cum aceasta poate să ţi-o tragă.

Este ştiut de către cei familiarizaţi cu fenomenul, că atât wrestlerii din marile promoţii, dar mai ales cei din promoţiile independente nu au o viaţă roz. Puţini sunt aceia care reuşesc să ajungă staruri de primă mână în federaţiile notorii şi şi mai puţini sunt aceia care se pot bucura la bătrâneţe de munca depusă în folosul artei de a da cu pumnul, dar a nu-ţi răni adversarul.

Personajul lui Mickey Rourke este una din victimele acestei industrii nemiloase. Fostă vedetă acum douăzeci şi de ani, Randy “The Ram” îşi duce viaţa de pe-o zi pe alta. În timpul săptămânii lucrează într-un supermarket, iar în weekend revine în lumea unde era cândva rege – cea a ringului de wrestling, singurul loc care-i mai alină suferinţa. Probabil că talentul şi pasiunea au fost cele două lucruri care l-au motivat să-şi continue cariera în acest domeniu, dar acum, strămutat din vremurile wrestlingului clasic al anilor ’80, pasiunea ajunge să se amestece cu amărăciunea de a nu se fi ales cu nimic, după atâţia ani de glorie şi notorietate.  În plan material, e dezastru. Singurele bunuri sunt camioneta, rulota, şi pantalonii din spandex folosiţi în luptă. În plan sentimental, nu are nici atât. Fiica îl urăşte pentru indiferenţa din toţi anii trecuţi, iar singura femeie pentru care simte ceva e o stripteuză cu o viaţă poate la fel de distrusă ca a lui, care evită să-l primească alături de ea.

În acest context, pentru ce să mai trăieşti ? Păi pentru acea ultimă săritură din colţul ringului, care şi încheie  magistral filmul. O săritură cât o viaţă de om am putea spune, pentru că prin ea, Randy revine la esenţă, la elementul care l-a făcut să meargă mai departe şi pentru care a sacrificat totul – wrestlingul. Oare a meritat ?

Lui “The Wrestler” îi dau 4 stele din 5, adică film foarte bun. Marisa Tomei face un rol bun,  Mickey Rourke a avut o prestaţie impecabilă şi după părerea mea merită Oscarul pentru rol masculin principal.  Ce nu mi-a plăcut au fost secvenţele de lupte hardcore – nu că n-ar fi fost bine făcute şi că nu s-ar petrece în realitate, dar partea asta “extremă” a wrestlingului chiar nu-mi place.

http://www.everybodylovesterry.com/bb/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=4087

Free wrestling newsletter

thats right. i am gonna one-up everybody at F$W and alongside a e-fed (which i know they won’t fucking do) i’ll make a new collum for this forum with alot of nice ass news and insights. so let’s get this bitch started

IN THE FUCKING HEADLINES THIS MONTH!

NOT SO HIGH HOPES:
recently in an interview with PWInsider.com The Wrestler Star Mickey Rourke actualy admited that he thought the movie didn’t have a chance in hell of doing anything in the theaters but is greatful that it has done so well. Also Recently on an apperence on the Late Show With David Letterman Rourke admited that he’s eating those words. The Wrestler won won breakout film at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival, and was a outstanding smash at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, Also Rourke won a Golden Globe for his role as “The Ram” and the film has also been givin a whomping 3 nominations. however one person involved with the film is pissed off that he didn’t get nominated. and he took it out on ticketmaster recently. and thats 2009 super bowl halftime performer Bruce Springsteen. Recently he was on a tyrant saying that his music score should’ve been nominated. If Rourke wins best actor it’ll be the biggest comeback in Hollywood history.

VINCE STEALS YET ANOTHER MOVE FROM THE PAST:
As Julio noted earlier during an interview with the UK Sun Eric Bischoff not only slamed TNA Wrestling and Staff. but he also slammed World Wrestling Entertainment Chairman Vince Machman. here is a bit from the article

“Bischoff also says Vince McMahon is considering a reality show that would be very similar to Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling. “There are now rumors here in the States, that he is going to launch a reality show much like CCW and bring celebrities in.” Bischoff believes McMahon was upset with Hogan’s CCW show not because it exposed the business, but because he beat Vince to the punch. “I think the reason Vince McMahon got mad is because we put on a great show and it was a fresh idea,” Bischoff said. “Vince was only disappointed that we got there first.”

The Former “Uncle Eric” and Former “Eazy-E” of the NWO era of WCW was pointing at the fact that a 2nd former reality show star has been granted a WWE Devomptel Contract with Florada Championship Wrestling. This person being Former Harvard Law School graduate and reality TV star David Otunga who also happens to be the Husband to be of Oscar Winning Actress/Grammy Winning Singer Jennifer Hudson…can you smell what the hollywood Wrestlers is Cookin? The First Season of Hulk Hogan’s Celberty Championship Wrestling DVD will be on sale in March on Big Vision Entertainment as BVE Owner and Former XPW President in Charge of Operations Kevin Klienrock was one of the shows executive producers.

ANOTHER MMA COMPANY STEPS UP TO UFC:

Sho-Time..the prem movie channel thats responable for shows such as Stargate SG-1, Weeds, And The L Word has finnaly decided to go into the MMA Business as Mike Johnson of PWInsier.com reported. The MMA Company Strikeforce has been givin a multi-year contract to air 16 events a year with the channel including big time championships. Will this finnaly give the UFC some bang for their buck? or will Strikeforce fall prey to the same fate as Pride and Elite XC? speaking of Elite XC. Their parent company King Of The Cage started airing a best of show on Fox Sports Network’s across the midwest recently and has announced that they will be airing live shows on the network starting in March featuring big name matchups. The best of programs feature UFC Superstars such as Forrest Griffin, Quineten “Rampage” Jackson, Rasheed Evans, and Evan Tanner amung the names. The First MMA Strikeforce event on Shotime will air live on April 11th 2009 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose California and tickets are still available.

FINALY:
Japanese Wrestling Legned Jushin “Thunder” Liger aside from battling a brain tumor will wrestle in the J-Cup Tournament. for full info there head to

http://www.pwinsider.com

and that wraps up this first edition..news story sources were from wrestle-planet.com, pwinsiderxtra.com, pwinsider.com, and thesun.uk

see ya next month

http://www.everybodylovesterry.com/bb/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=4087

Also, if you haven’t already, sign up to be RAM MVP member. You sign up at the store or online and they will periodically send you coupons for buy-one-get-one free dinners. Note – this can’t be combined with the kid’s eat for $1 promotion.

Make sure to visit online or call ahead of time to make sure you understand all the rules and the fine print. I’m not sure if they are limiting the number of kids per table that can eat for $1.

Happy dining!

The Wrestler

The struggles of the Big Three U.S. automakers are common knowledge to anyone who has turned on CNN or picked up a copy of The New York Times over the past two months. It was a decline decades in the making, the result of a lethargy, stasis, ignorance and the idea that people would buy American even if the product made the Edsel look like a Mercedes. Now, what better symbol of this relic of an industry is there than Clint Eastwood, at 78 years young, sitting on a rocking chair with a decimated 12-pack of Pabst Blue Ribbon lying next to him and a glob of Red Man seeping through his cheek?

Eastwood’s portrayal of the curmudgeonly old bigot and ex-Ford assembly line worker Walt Kowalski is beautiful for it’s encapsulation of a greatest generation long gone and now unwanted. He practically growls his way through the entire film, not lamenting, but plain pissed off that his country has gone down the shitter. His once middle-class Detroit neighborhood is now a glorified slum, its all-white population scared off to Grosse Point and replaced by a polyglot hodgepodge of immigrants. While the film is ultimately about the transcendence of the human condition over racism and the quelling of one’s inner demons through good works, it is not lost on the audience that Walt Kowalski is a 21st century Custer. He and the generation he represents are dwindling and aging, succumbing to the rule of a soft-paunched baby boomer class that eschews their hard-nosed work ethic for a crass materialism that contradicts the counter-culture that first disgusted the Walt’s of the world. Walt Kowalski’s end is a noble one, but it is all for naught, as his children would never have followed his example.

Randy, “The Ram,” Robinson could’ve been one of Walt Kowalski’s kids, but by the time we see him in The Wrestler he looks even more beat-up than the man thirty years his senior. Randy, expertly played by Mickey Rourke, has been through the meat-grinder that is the world of professional wrestling and comes out looking like he had been run through a leather-tanning factory. Rourke’s superb acting is aided by the fact that his face, decimated from years of boxing, plastic surgery and drug use, looks like pockmarked piece of burnt meat. Randy was once a star who filled up 100,000 seat arenas, a man on par with Hulk Hogan or Andre the Giant, but now that his fame has passed him by he’s forced to wrestle at community centers and American Legion buildings while keeping a part time job at a supermarket.

Some falls are harder than the one from the top rope.

Rourke represents the decadence and excess of the eighties, which history might mark as the tipping point for our nation, when we let our bread and circuses drive us towards oblivion. Rourke’s portrayal of “The Ram” presents a tragically myopic figure who can live only in the present and knows nothing of foresight. His fame gone and his bridges with family and friends scorched, he is left to sleep in the back of his van surrounded by posters exhibiting his former glory. But, in spite of all of his character flaws, you can’t help but love the guy for all his charisma and resiliency. Despite his heart attack and the pleas of an over-the-hill stripper (Marissa Tomei) to come back to the real world, he can’t because wrestling is all he knows and he’ll do it even if he dies mid-suplex.

Both of these men are dinosaurs. They were built to live in a world that no longer exists and they would rather get shot in the heart than change who they are. They represent America, a land that is so used to being a superpower that the idea of just being another world power is unthinkable. We won’t adapt to the new paradigm of the 21st century, but will stubbornly linger in the 20th, reminiscing about The Battle of the Bulge and Apollo 11. There’s a telling scene in The Wrestler where Randy invites a neighborhood kid into his trailer to play a Nintendo wrestling game that has Randy “The Ram” as a character in all of his 8-bit glory. While they’re playing the kid is pissing and moaning about how boring these old games are and about how cool the new Call of Duty IV game is for the XBOX 360. “The Ram” can’t understand why the kid would want to play anything other than this Nintendo wrestling game and the kid can’t understand how Randy can play this ancient video game. I’ll leave it up to you to guess which one is America and which is the rest of the world.

The Wrestler is certainly one of those movies that keeps you thinking long after the movie’s over and a movie you will never forget. You will remember this film because of its emotional story and a masterful performance by one of the greats, a Mr. Mickey Rourke. This is a film that will make you feel every emotion there is, because everything in this film is felt by both the main character and the audience. Every punch, chair, and staple gun Randy gets to the leg, face, or back, every word he’s called, every feeling of happiness is felt by both Randy “The Ram” Robinson and the audience. These feelings are felt because of the spectacular direction and amazing performances by all, except for Rourke’s. His performance can’t just be called amazing, that’s an insult. His performance was nothing short of perfection.

 The Wrestler is the emotional story of your average common man who wants to be somebody. Except the only difference here is that this average joe is that he has been somebody, only that was 20 years ago and his life has gone down the tubes. He’s now just an “old broken down piece of meat” and he’s got a lot of regrets that he wants to make up for. He’s made mistakes like anyone and he wants to make up for them. He wants his daughter’s (Evan Rachel Wood) affection back. He wants to love again and he attempts to find that love in a stripper with her own problems (Marisa Tomei). The only problem is that “The Ram” isn’t so easily changed. He can never forget the blood, sweat and cheers. 

This much more to say, but I don’t want to give away too much. The Wrestler is a film that manages to find and tap into all of our deepest emotions and dreams. Its much more than your average movie, which ironic because it’s about a very average character. This will surely strike a nerve in the hearts of millions because of its sad tale of love, life, dreams, and regret and also because of one of the most believable performances ever filmed. 

Grade: A

by The Great White Gypsy

White people are crazy.

I never really got into wrestling.  I know, it’s real, they are like stuntmen, and people have died in the ring.  But it’s scripted, it’s retardedly violent in a white trash kinda way, and they wear tights.  So when I saw the poster for The Wrestler, I wasn’t really interested.  Then I read that Robert D. Seigel wrote it (his only credit so far is The Onion Movie) and I got less excited.  Then I learned that Darren Aronofsky directed it, and Mickey Rourke was the main star.  So I went right out and watched it.  Ten minutes in, one single thought was creeping around in my head:

White people are crazy.

Watching Rourke jump off the ropes onto a guy’s head, seeing them using ladders, chairs, barbed wire and staple guns on each other (yeah, staple guns…in the face), I felt slightly detached from the story; I couldn’t identify with these kind of people.

Then I saw Mickey Rourke cry, and I was moved.

The premise has been done before in sports films.  Rourke is The Ram, an aging wrestler who at one time was as big in underground circuits as Hulk Hogan.  He now plays smaller venues; high schools, civic centers, YMCA type stuff.  Then he has a heart attack, and the doctor tells him he can never wrestle again.  So he reevaluates his life, tries to reconnect with his estranged daughter (Evan Rachel Wood), and form a meaningful relationship with a stripper (Marisa Tomei).  Sounds like a Ron Howard movie, right?

Wrong.  Darren Aronofsky is a fairly young director.  However, even with only three films under his belt (Pi, Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain) he has proved that he can carry a project, and do it well.  Possibly his best trait is he uses the camera like an extension of his mind.

Requiem for a Dream was one of the first films to use a camera strapped to the actor’s waist while they were running.  He complimented that with close-up shots of irises when drugs were being used, and a Danny Boyle-style way of making a cramped apartment seem vast and lonely (which he also used in his fantasy love story, The Fountain). 

In the wrestler, you could tell it was Aronofsky behind the camera.  In the first five minutes Rourke is on screen, even though it is well shot and acted, you don’t see his face.  The camera is always behind him.  This may seem simple, but it was actually profound.  Not only did this provoke a feeling of anticipation watching The Ram walk through hallways before emerging into the main room to the sound of screaming fans, but it made every situation he got into a wrestling match.  This technique was used when he was going into work at a deli, when he was walking up to his daughter’s house for the first time in years, when he was walking into the strip club to see his only “friend”.  It also established the character very well, giving the feeling that he turned his back to most of the world, hiding his face and his fears.

When I first saw the trailer, I assumed (maybe because it’s Mickey Rourke) that the main character would be an asshole.  That he’d be an alcoholic, a drug addict, a slave to the chanting masses.  He’s none of these things.  He’s actually a really cool guy, but he just can’t get his life to work right.  He tries, he really does.  And despite my detachment from his profession, I really felt for the guy. 

But I guess that’s Aronofsky in a nutshell.  He has extreme, unrelatable settings (everyone’s a drug addict, or traveling through time in search of love, or putting a drill to your head), and yet, somehow, the characters are so compelling and real that nothing seems that outrageous.

Perhaps even more impressive is that, at age 52, Mickey Rourke does most of his own stunts, jumping off the ropes, doing crazy acrobatics.  He really was a wrestler.

If there is any decency left in the Academy, this will get nods for best actor, director, picture, and screenplay.  If not, at least Marisa Tomei will inexplicably walk with a Best Actress nomination.

Final Grade: A-