Can You Smell What Mickey's Cooking?

Apologies for my lack of presence on here over the past few months. What with a new job running HampsteadPeople, forming a new band called Castle Radio and something else new that I can’t think of, I’ve had a lack of time to leisurely write reviews of whatever random stuff I’ve been playing, reading or watching. A three day ‘holiday’ (I’m still working on the website and chasing up random Castle Radio stuff) however has given me a spare half an hour and I thought I’d use it wisely!

Last night I watched The Wrestler. I’m a little behind I know but there was an awful lot on at the cinema at the same time so I just never got round to it. It recently came out on DVD and so I stuck it on my LoveFilm list and through my letterbox it fell. (We don’t actually have a letter box… But it just sounded better than writing ‘the postman rung on our door…’)

I actually had no idea what The Wrestler was actually about. Obviously I knew it was about a wrestler and starred Mickey Rourke and at some point in the film he had a personal relationship. I also presumed the film might deal with some kind of wrestling come-back. Nothing of the kind… It was actually really refreshing to watch a film with no idea about where it would be going.

For those however, who want a basic synopsis… Rourke plays an aging professional wrestler who’s at the stage in his career where any sensible person has retired. He’s obviously not doing it for the money seeing as he lives in a trailer, so obviously just loves what he does. One fantastically intense fight however pushes him over the edge and he has a heart attack. The rest of the film deals with his recovery and his attempts to reintegrate himself in normal society.

I’m not going to beat around the bush, this film is just excellent. But there’s two things that I really need mentioning in relation to this. Firstly is Rourke’s performance. There’s a reason he was nominated for an Oscar for it. Despite the fact he always plays very similar characters in most films he’s in, this time he gets it spot-on. Randy, his character, is one of the most likable but realistic people I’ve watched on screen. He’s flawed but completely helpless. You can see there’s this soul to this man that, despite his profession, wouldn’t actually hurt a fly. The entire way through, I just wanted to sit down and have a drink with the man.

The other thing worth mentioning is director Darren Aronofsky. The Wrestler is one of the best examples of directing I’ve seen in the past five years and it’s unsurprising seeing as pretty much every film he’s done has been acclaimed by my generation (Pi, Requiem for a Dream and The Fountain). His directing here is gritty and again, hugely realistic. There’s two scenes that truly stand out. The first, when Randy takes a job on a deli counter (partly thanks to Aronofsky’s directing, but especially because of Rourke’s acting) and just before that, when Randy walks from the changing room to the counter... Well, you’ll see, it’s pure genius.

The Wrestler is many things. On the surface it’s just a great film. Beneath that it’s a fascinating glimpse into the world of professional wrestling, and a sobering one at that. It’s not all glamour. These men (and women) are amazingly fit and despite being choreographed, it’s made clear that doesn’t make it easy. Finally, it’s a sad and touching tale of a man who’s dedicated his life to something that’s ripped away from him, something I’m sure we could all imagine. And the ending, well, it's been a while since I've seen a film end like this one and I've missed it. If you’ve not watched this film yet, do it. It was surely one of the best of 2008.