Darren Aronofsky's The Wrestler

[The Future]

I really really want to watch this but we don't have theatres here so I am hoping the pirated DVD hits the stores.

[Timmoru Suzuki]

Saw it tonight and really enjoyed it, very well acted and it respects wrestling rather than being all "LOL TEH FAKES!" Like I feared it might, some really good emotional scenes and character building. Its also fun playing 'Spot the indy wrestler'.

[fourstarfizzle]

Saw it last night, loved it.

And incase anyone didn't know:

On Friday, January 16, 2009, wrestler Paul "Paul E. Normus" Fuchs passed away at 33 years of age. He was among the many real life wrestlers featured in the film. Police did not find anything suspicious at the scene and are handling the incident as a medically related death.[25]

Incase you don't know who Paul E. Normus was in the film, he was in the backstage shots for the WXW show. This is him:

[zero]

Absolutely phenomenal movie and deserves every bit of praise being heaped onto it. This is Mickey Rourke's movie, he owns the role and plays it to absolute perfection - honestly, there isn't a single bad thing you can say about Rourke's portrayal of Randy "The Ram" Robinson.

Go see it, even if you're like me and there's only one theater in your entire city playing it - go see it.

[IDOL]

Absolutely phenomenal movie and deserves every bit of praise being heaped onto it. This is Mickey Rourke's movie, he owns the role and plays it to absolute perfection - honestly, there isn't a single bad thing you can say about Rourke's portrayal of Randy "The Ram" Robinson.

Go see it, even if you're like me and there's only one theater in your entire city playing it - go see it.

QFE

[TheSqauredCircleMessiah]

Just caught this recently, and I must say that I wasn't let down a single bit. Rourke was sooooo believable in his role, and the way that the film was shot made everything seem like reality. Definitley a tear jerker in parts - - a sad, but beautiful movie at the same time. I also agree with whoever said you don't have to be smark to enjoy the movie. My little sister has watched very little wrestling and loved the movie. All of the acting was great and really believable, kind of reminded me of Beyond The Mat at times.

I'm pretty sure Aronofsky has said in interviews that the style of this movie is heavily influenced by Beyond the Mat. It could've been a nice little cheat for Arnofsky to use a narrator or make it a mockumentary, I'm glad he didn't.

[Farmer Reil]

I loved most of the film, and Rourke was perfect as The Ram, but was I the only one that thought the end of the film was a bit... well... shit?

Maybe it was the fact that it was the end and thus there was no more film. But I was left feeling "huh? Where's the rest of it?" There was no real resolution at all, to anything (including the match ). When I looked back on the film after I'd left the cinema I realised it was pretty awesome... I just wish there was more of it. I guess that's a good thing really. Not that I'm baying for a sequel, as a sequel would be utterly pointless. I just wish there was more of the original. So many things feel unresolved.

Also, who was the incredibly Stevie Richards-looking, Stevie Richards-sounding guy talking to Ron Killings, who according to the credits wasn't Stevie Richards?

[Skummy]

I can't think of any other way to end it, though.

Spoiler: Click here to view

Either he dies, and then what? End the film in the hospital, end the film at his funeral, end the film with Pam crying her eyes out? That would be even more of a downer than the actual ending, and wouldn't really make sense; every single scene in the film followed Ram. There wasn't any of it from anyone else's perspective, so if it had to end with his death, it would have ended just as abruptly, but probably would have fucked up the pacing of it all. If he hadn't...then what? He retires "happy"? Not really, he's still going back to a trailer park and a ruined life. A talent scout from a major promotion spots him after the match with the Ayatollah? Great, he's still got heart problems and shouldn't be wrestling. There isn't really any way of giving the film a conclusive ending any more than they did, and I'm happy with that.

[NobBe Nobbs]

I can't think of any other way to end it, though.

Spoiler: Click here to view

Either he dies, and then what? End the film in the hospital, end the film at his funeral, end the film with Pam crying her eyes out? That would be even more of a downer than the actual ending, and wouldn't really make sense; every single scene in the film followed Ram. There wasn't any of it from anyone else's perspective, so if it had to end with his death, it would have ended just as abruptly, but probably would have fucked up the pacing of it all. If he hadn't...then what? He retires "happy"? Not really, he's still going back to a trailer park and a ruined life. A talent scout from a major promotion spots him after the match with the Ayatollah? Great, he's still got heart problems and shouldn't be wrestling. There isn't really any way of giving the film a conclusive ending any more than they did, and I'm happy with that.

I think I saw it on ROC's facebook, a quote from Bill Simmons saying that there's really no way for the Wrestler to not have a sad ending. They just picked the one that was the least of a downer, and I thought it was a good idea - no sense heaping more misery on everybody.

So yeah. Good film. First time I've come close to crying at a movie.

[Farmer Reil]

You know, the more I sit here and type my reasons why I felt the ending sucked, the more I realise it was actually the best way of doing it. Hate it when that happens... The more you try to explain why you're right, the more you realise you're totally wrong.

This film just got even more genius.

[wgh_2001]

Ok, I do have a complaint about the ending. It's a real simple one and had it been done differently the real ending wouldn't probably bother as many people.

The problem: "The Black Hole" What do I mean? I mean right after the last shot where there is between 20-25 seconds before the credits start. It was far too much time for it to be there and left viewers expecting another scene. If it had been down to about 10 seconds then it wouldn't have been as bad. The audience would've gotten the effect better and it wouldn't have seemed anywhere near as awkward as it did.

Other than that, it was a great movie.

[zero]

The Ending:

Spoiler: Click here to view

The beauty in the ending is that exact moment is the apex of Randy's life, live or die, that's him at his happiest - hitting the Ram Jam in front of his fans against the guy who was his biggest rival 20 years ago. It doesn't matter if he dies right there or if he lives on because that's it for him, his life is wrecked on pretty much every level and the only place it doesn't matter is in that ring.

[ROC]

I can't think of any other way to end it, though.

Spoiler: Click here to view

Either he dies, and then what? End the film in the hospital, end the film at his funeral, end the film with Pam crying her eyes out? That would be even more of a downer than the actual ending, and wouldn't really make sense; every single scene in the film followed Ram. There wasn't any of it from anyone else's perspective, so if it had to end with his death, it would have ended just as abruptly, but probably would have fucked up the pacing of it all. If he hadn't...then what? He retires "happy"? Not really, he's still going back to a trailer park and a ruined life. A talent scout from a major promotion spots him after the match with the Ayatollah? Great, he's still got heart problems and shouldn't be wrestling. There isn't really any way of giving the film a conclusive ending any more than they did, and I'm happy with that.

I think I saw it on ROC's facebook, a quote from Bill Simmons saying that there's really no way for the Wrestler to not have a sad ending. They just picked the one that was the least of a downer, and I thought it was a good idea - no sense heaping more misery on everybody.

So yeah. Good film. First time I've come close to crying at a movie.

Admittedly, his review more or less is a meditation on a lot of things, namely that he loved pro wrestling until June 2007 and the whole Benoit situation and that now he's unabashedly negative on the wrestling lifestyle because of all the deaths of people he loved watching that suddenly passed on. And he of course heaps loads of praise on the movie and etc. It's a great read, actually.

[Pepsi]

Ok, I do have a complaint about the ending. It's a real simple one and had it been done differently the real ending wouldn't probably bother as many people.

The problem: "The Black Hole" What do I mean? I mean right after the last shot where there is between 20-25 seconds before the credits start. It was far too much time for it to be there and left viewers expecting another scene. If it had been down to about 10 seconds then it wouldn't have been as bad. The audience would've gotten the effect better and it wouldn't have seemed anywhere near as awkward as it did.

Other than that, it was a great movie.

I loved that though. Really let the moment resonate more then if it immediately cut to the credits.

[apsham]

Spoiler: Click here to view

So is the general consensus here that he died? I like the idea that the film ended right there because he was dead, no more behind the back following angles.. etc.

[IDOL]

I was also feeling let down by the ending, but thought it over and realized that it was without a doubt the best one. Zero said it perfectly. Live or die, that very moment was Ram at his happiest, in the place he most belonged. It's beautiful in its sadness really.

[zero]

More ending talk

Spoiler: Click here to view

I think it's safe to assume he's dead, and even if he lives, he doesn't have anything to live for.

[TheSqauredCircleMessiah]

Re: Ending

Spoiler: Click here to view

It's an indy film, of course he's dead

[thatblindgeye]

Spoiler: Click here to view

Usually I either dislike or don't really care for abrupt ending. No Country For Old Men, for example. People drooled over that movie and raved about the ending, yet I thought it was just a decent film and the ending did nothing for me.

Here, though, I loved the abrupt ending. As people have said... The entire movie focuses on Ram's currently dull and pathetic, more or less, life. They show him trying to get back in touch with his daughter and seemingly getting there but fucking up because he can't change who he is, they show what he has to go through every single day, they show him being told he can't/shouldn't wrestle anymore due to a heart condition. The scene where he signs autographs and stops to take a look at the other old guys around him I thought was a good scene to add to his character in a way.

All of that leads up to the final match. He cuts that promo, telling how he feels in the most sincere way, and then we get the shot of Ram on the top rope, crying and smiling, and we see him jump off for the Ram Jam. As people have said, that moment shows that Ram couldn't give a shit about ANYTHING in his life when he's in the ring wrestling for the fans. It shows that, live or die, fame or not, his entire life IS wrestling for the fans.

I don't think any other ending would have been as good. Going on a few minutes to go "Ram has passed away" would have taken away from that. Going "Ram lives!" would have taken away from that, but would have given people the typical Hollywood 'everyone lives happily ever after' ending. Going "Ram Lives! Ram gets signed and becomes a huge star again and gets back in touch with his daughter and marries the stripper!".... I really would have hated just because I hate how every movie out of Hollywood, well pretty much mostly every movie, has the happy lovey dovey ending regardless of the plot. If a guy stalks some girl and kills her parents and tortures her brother and punts her dog and rapes her, by movies end they'll be married.

So yeah. The ending, while not for every movie, was just beautiful for this one. I don't think it's really an ending to make you go "Wait... what happened?" It's more of an ending to show you Ram's character, to see what his life means and is all about and that he doesn't care about anything but wrestling for the fans, that when he is in the ring his daughter wanting nothing to do with him or his fuck ups in his life or the fact that he's an old wrestler that has hit rock bottom... none of that matters to him when he's in the ring. We see Ram at the peak of happiness, something we haven't really seen the entire movie. We've seen him smile and everything, but not in the same way.

[Skummy]

Spoiler: Click here to view

Ultimately, it doesn't matter. What matters is that he made the decision, he was doing it on his own terms - he got to do what he loved, whether it killed him or not is inconsequential, because in that moment nothing else mattered to him.