The Wrestler

A washed up professional wrestler (Mickey Rourke) who used to pack arenas with screaming fans nearly 20 years ago tries to hold his life together while recovering from a heart attack, wooing a stripper (Marisa Tomei), and reconciling with his estranged daughter (Evan Rachel Wood).

Mickey Rourke gives a raw performance as Randy "The Ram". His Oscar nomination for the role is well deserved. Ironically, the role is more of a self portrayal of his Hollywood life than that of a fictional character. I remember Rourke from the early to mid-80s of my youth. He was a super-star. "Angel Hart" is one of my favorite films from the decade of decadence. Yes, the screenplay was great but it was Rourke's performance as a down-and-out private eye who unwittingly is hired to find himself (it works very well in the movie). After "Angel hart" he made several bad film choices, relationship choices, and life choices, and so on and so on and so on. Movie fans know the story.

As I watched The Wrestler I kept thinking of Rourke's career and the talent that he squandered over the past 2 decades. America loves a comeback. It will be interesting to see if Oscar loves a comeback at the end of the month. I wish Rourke well.

"The Wrestler" works best if you are somewhat familiar with Rourke's career. I give it a "7". At times it is a difficult film to watch due to its graphic view of the non-professional wrestling circuit. However, over all, it is a good flick.