“The Wrestler” is the story of Randy “The Ram” Robinson, a washed up wrestler from the 80’s. But it is also the story of a stripper with a heart of gold, Mickey Rourke with his amazing comeback to acting, and all of us, focusing on the pain and suffering we endure to be loved and accepted, and it’s absolutely beautiful.
Mickey Rourke plays Randy, and with the pain he’s had to face until now, this story may as well be autobiographical. With that said, Rourke puts his heart and soul into this performance, creating one of the most identifiable characters of the year. Randy is lonely and defeated, and he knows he deserves to be nothing more, but he is so dedicated to the people he loves including his daughter Stephanie (Evan Rachel Wood), Cassidy the stripper (Marisa Tomei) and most importantly his fans as “The Ram.” We can’t help but return his kindness.
He begins the film doing fights for small audiences, but there’s nothing small about his performance in the ring. Off stage, all the wrestlers are friendly and caring, discussing the best way to get hit, not to ensure their safety, but to give the best show. Inside the ring, Randy is brutal, especially to himself. He hides a shard of glass beneath his taped wrist to slice open his forehead after a hit. Randy is adored by the fans and by his fellow wrestlers, and the pain he endures is his form of appreciation to show he cares.
The ring is the only place where he is admired and looked up to. His fans love him, and he returns the gesture. The message of the film is to offer the most of yourself for the people you love, and no one gives more than Randy. The painful images are the beautiful symbols of acceptance the film so gracefully preaches.
These are the most shocking moments of the film, filled with powerful brutality that speak more than words ever could. But Randy’s moment in the spotlight is cut short after a heart attack. Forced to retire from wrestling, he enters a very bleak world to discover how lonely he truly is. The pain he feels everyday was something he could until now only mask with wrestling. But now he is alone, and it’s heartbreaking to see him continue to reach out.
The most powerful relationships in this film are those Randy shares with Cassidy and Stephanie. In Cassidy’s eyes, he is just a customer, a regular. But Randy sees through that, and he opens up to her good nature. Even when she leaves the dark strip club and becomes Pam, the caring and “clean” single mother, Randy finds the same inner beauty he’s been calling out to in the pursuit of acceptance. In Stephanie’s case, they’ve had a falling out in the past, and she despises him. Yet he continues to reach out until a truly beautiful bonding moment. We know this is a powerful scene because even though he’s used to pain both physical and emotional, it never makes it any easier.
Randy is perhaps the sweetest, most charming character of the year. Rourke has the ability to illustrate such a person that is caring and loving, and yet maintain a tough, rugged perception without defaulting to any of the stereotypes. Rourke does it all through expressions. His face, his eyes, and his movements all speak wonders. When he steps into the ring, he doesn’t showboat and isn’t boisterous, and his ending monologue is anything but.
“The Wrestler” is the most winning, inspirational story of 2008. It is well directed and marvelously acted. It is the heartwarming yet heartbreaking story I’ve been waiting for, and it’s everything I could’ve wanted it to be.
4 stars