THe Best American Film About Loneliness Since Brokeback Mountain!

Rating: 10/10 (18 December 2008)

After seeing the greatness of MILK, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE and THE DARK KNIGHT, I didn't think it would be possible to be floored once again by a 2008 motion picture. Last night though I wasn't only floored but I felt I was walking on air after watching Darren Aronofsky's near masterpiece, THE WRESTLER.
MIckey Rourke's performance is not one of just hype. He is the real deal here. Like Ledger in BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN, he's able to inspire tears from the viewer without even having to say anything. It's in those sad soulful eyes and the beaten down affect of a person whose sole identity is based on the adoration of strangers.
Loneliness is the key ingredient here. Aronofsky films New Jersey in away you usually see in European films like ones from the Dardeene brothers. He really brings you into the world of those down and out in the United States, without being condescending at all. Aronofsky, educated at Harvard, is amazing in his depiction being so authentic of the strip clubs, soulless shopping centers, and trailer parks. I don't imagine he has lived in the world portrayed in THE WRESTLER but his portrays it so honestly that at times it felt like a documentation of everyday life.
THE WRESTLER is amazing, for while it's full of despair, gritty/desolate locations and people who are like ghosts from the 80's, it maintains this sense of hope that no matter who you are you will have someone out there who will love you. It reminded me of conventions I've gone to where former actors that used to be adored are now seen as relics, yet there are still those devoted fans that come out of the woodwork. THE WRESTLER has vivid authentic scenes portraying this subculture.
As for the actual wrestling, well not being a fan of the sport, I was absolutely riveted by all the sequence portraying the brutality of it and yet the extreme compassion that the wrestlers have for one another.
Anyway I could go on and on. There's a lot here to discuss including the dueling thread of Marisa Tomei and Mickey Rourke's characters both using there aging bodies to perform, and yet not knowing if they have anything else. There are some painful scenes of Tomei being rejected at the strip club where she works. The devastation and fear in her face should win her an Oscar.
So yes THE WRESTLER is my # 1 film of the year. I have not had an emotional response to a film like this since BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN!