One of the best movies ever made

Rating: 10/10 (15 November 2016)

This great American drama is held together by Mickey Rourke's performance as a professional wrestler who is a dumb hulk with a big heart. He gives all of his love to his fans with his wrestling - and they give him all their love in return. Tragically, he suffers a heart attack and now he can no longer wrestle, and so he is left alone in a world where no one loves him.
He seeks companionship.
Everywhere he goes the companions he seek reject him. His neighbors. A stripper. Even his own daughter.
One day the stripper - who also has a big heart but exists in an industry where she cannot love her fans and her fans do not love her - takes a leap of faith to reach out to our hero. She agrees to spend time with him and encourages him to reconnect with his daughter. When he does - as if by miracle - the daughter accepts him back into her life. For a few brief days - he seems to be able to find love and accept the loss of his career as a wrestler.
Unfortunately - just when real love seems to surface these people fail to connect: He makes a pass at the stripper at the wrong time. She rejects him. He overreacts and verbally abuses her and then abuses drugs. The drugs make him miss out on a mission critical date with his daughter. The daughter overreacts and lashes out on our hero and throws him out of her life once again. The loss of love is sudden for all of them - and they are left alone.
Soon it becomes clear that our hero has destroyed his family - not once - but twice - and perhaps more times than that. He can only love to his fans - because that is the only world his talents as a big dumb hulk provide companionship.
Our hero decides he will go back into the ring to wrestle - even if it costs him his life. He would rather die in front of the fans who love him than be left alone in a world without love. But the stripper has a change of heart and reaches out to heal him one final time - but the damage done is too severe and he has to let her go so she can find a man in her life who will not harm her. He enters the ring - for one final match that may cost him his life.
On the one hand - this film is an allegory to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ - where our hero is a Christ-like figure who is beaten and mocked on his way to be nailed to a cross.
But on the other hand this is also a film about the lives of damaged human beings - the love that burns deep inside of them - and the struggle for their love to be recognized in order to find companionship.
It is perfect.