' I'm an old broken down piece of meat... and I'm alone. And I deserve to be all alone.'

Rating: 8/10 (2 April 2010)

Mickey Rourke is an actor who has suffered ups and downs in his career. In the 80s he did star in popular films and he was respected: but he thrown it all away when he turned his back on acting in 1991 to become a boxer. He career in the 90s fell into the doldrums. It was only in 2005 Rourke won back the respect of audiences playing Marv in Sin City. The Wrestler was the final act of his acting rehabilitation was completed, earning himself an Oscar nod.
Randy "The Ram" Robinson (Mickey Rourke) was a popular wrestler in the 1980s, but by 2008 his career has fared and he is pasted his prime. He wrestles in New Jersey for die-hard fans and it is only purpose in life. Randy work in the back room of a supermarket and he is estrange from his daughter Stephanie (Evan Rachel Wood) and he spends a lot of time in a sleazy strip club: his best friend is an ageing stripper Pam, stage-named Cassidy (Marisa Tomei). Randy is offered the chance to wrestler a re-match with his old rival the Ayatollah (Ernest Miller) (that's political correctness for you). But after a hardcore wrestling match Randy suffers a heart attack. His doctor tells him he can not wrestle any more and he is forced to retire. Randy gets a new job working behind a deli counter, and tries to rebuild his relationship with his daughter. He also starts to get closer with Pam, the two being kindred spirits. But the pull of wrestle continues to lead Randy down a path of self-destruction.
The Wrestler is of course Rourke's film: he deserved an Oscar nod, and he does offer a powerful performance, the best in his career. The scene at beach was worthy of that alone. This is a film about someone destruction, particularly because of their sport/passion, like in Raging Bull. But Rourke's performs only tells half the story. They are two other good performers in this film: Tomei and Wood. Tomei is not a one-dimensional character, she is a loving mother who sees Randy as a friend. She is someone who wants the best for her son, and wants to move away from her old life. Wood is an excellent actress ever since she came onto the scene with her powerhouse performance in Thirteen. Again she offers a good performance as a young woman who is bitter because of her father's abandonment. They are sadly some moment of overacting, particularly with her hand gestures, but it was still a good performance.
The Wrestler is Darren Aronofsky's first film since The Fountain, a marmite film: you either love it or hate it. With the Wrestler Aronofsky is playing it safer: telling a simple drama. Aronofsky casts good actors in the film, but not as emotionally powerful as Requiem for a Dream. Aronofsky uses hand-held cameras to great effort, having a number of steady cam shot following characters in continuous shots. It not like with Paul Greengrass whom films look like they are directed by a amateur with a small camcorder. The wrestling scene were excellently handled, and brutal, particularly the hardcore match. It was just an example of sado-masochism. Aronofsky also shows the gritty, industrial nature of this area of America. This is not the glamour or high live of the big cities or suburbania. This is a grim existence, and cinematographer Maryse Alberti does well filming The Wrestler in a almost documentary feel where you can feel the dirt.
It could be argued that the screenwriter Robert D. Siegel wrote a darker version of a Rocky film. But he does tell a emotional story with a lot of depth behind it. This was a fine screenplay telling how someone can be their own worst enemy.
This a worthy drama film, with excellent acting and good writing and direction behind it.
8.4/10