The Wrestler - fame, love, pain

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Movie
German title The Wrestler - fame, love, pain
Original title The wrestler
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 2008
length 105 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director Darren Aronofsky
script Robert D. Siegel
production Darren Aronofsky,
Scott Franklin ,
Eric Watson
music Clint Mansell
camera Maryse Alberti
cut Andrew Weisblum
occupation

The Wrestler - fame, love, pain (Original title: The Wrestler ) is an American sports drama from 2008 . Directed by Darren Aronofsky , the screenplay was written by Robert D. Siegel .

action

The wrestler Robin Ramzinski, ring name Randy "The Ram" Robinson, was in the 1980s, a celebrated star in the US. Around twenty years later, he's still getting into the ring. However, the arenas of its heyday have now turned into small gyms in which third-rate matches take place with equally aged stars of yore. Years of drug abuse have left their mark on Robinson as well. His long, bleached hair can no longer cover his hearing aid. And yet there are still a few fans who celebrate him as they once did.

However, the poorly paid show appearances are no longer even enough to pay the rental space for his caravan, and so Robinson takes on work as a warehouse clerk in a supermarket. He often spends his evenings at a strip club, where he is the stripper Cassidy's favorite customer.

After a hardcore wrestling match in which Randy uses various weapons such as thumbtacks, barbed wire and a staple gun for the first time, Randy returns to the cabin covered in blood. After tending to his wounds, he passed out and was admitted to hospital. After receiving a coronary artery bypass , the attending physician explains to him that he had a heart attack - apparently as a result of years of taking steroids . The doctor is of the opinion that he could die if he played another ring, whereupon Robinson begins to rearrange his life, especially since he sees what has become of other wrestlers his age at an extremely poorly attended wrestler convention : one is in a wheelchair , and another obviously has a urine bag on his ankle. On Cassidy's advice, he contacts his daughter Stephanie, whom he has not seen for years. However, she initially refuses to contact him because he has not even been seen on her birthday for years. Cassidy then helps him look for a suitable present for the daughter. While she recommends a high-quality sailor's jacket in a second-hand shop, Robinson also buys an unattractive, bright green top with an "S" embroidered on it. It is worth mentioning that the garment chosen by Randy is reminiscent of a typical wrestling garment from the eighties in terms of color and design. A relationship begins to develop between Randy Robinson and Cassidy, but Cassidy abruptly ends after a kiss in a coffee shop, as she has made it a rule of herself not to enter into relationships with customers.

Randy Robinson returns to Stephanie again and hands her his present, which she opens listlessly and looks at with little enthusiasm. Only then does it become clear that Randy Robinson also followed Cassidy's suggestion and also bought the sailor's jacket. This gift breaks the ice between father and daughter. Both take a walk by the sea and arrange to have dinner a few days later. Randy Robinson's life seems to be getting better. For the free weekends he organizes work behind the delicatessen counter of the supermarket, where he is usually employed during the week in the warehouse. His decision to quit wrestling is now also communicated to his colleagues, who had already planned him for a rematch against his strongest competitor “The Ayatollah” on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of this then spectacular match.

One evening he falls into his old way of life. After being turned away by Cassidy again, he drives in frustration to a wrestling event and then to a party, takes drugs and sleeps with a female fan. When he later wakes up in his room, he realizes that he has an arranged meeting with his Daughter Stephanie has missed. He drives to her immediately, but cannot regain her trust. She accuses her father of having let her down again and, with tears of anger, swears to him that she will never see him again. When a former wrestling fan recognizes him at the meat counter despite his apron and hood, Randy gets so angry that he injures his hand with a sausage slicer, rioted in the supermarket and finally left it covered in blood. Since he has now apparently lost his job and cannot expect any affection from Cassidy, he finally agrees to participate in the rematch against “Ayatollah” despite his heart problems. Cassidy travels to the venue after him and wants to keep him from fighting because she no longer sees him as the customer, but as the lover. Randy Robinson is still willing to play the match. He explains to Cassidy that he belongs in the ring where, unlike many people he met, his fans have remained loyal to him despite everything and that he therefore owes them the appearance.

During the discussed match, Randy Robinson notices more and more clearly that he is close to another heart attack. His opponent also sees that Robinson cannot keep up the previously agreed course of action and offers him to let him defeat him earlier. Randy Robinson rejects these offers and other help from the referee. When he finally climbs onto the top rope of the ring for his finishing move , the so-called “Ram Jam”, in order to jump from there onto the “Ayatollah” lying on the ground, he can barely hold on to the rope. Randy gets tears in his eyes as the fans celebrate him. After one last look at the door Cassidy had been standing in to hold him back, which is now empty, he jumps. The camera fades out.

background

Originally, Nicolas Cage or Sylvester Stallone were intended for the male lead. The role was given to Mickey Rourke, a little later Marisa Tomei was hired. The show fights used in the film were recorded at live events in the leagues Ring of Honor and Combat Zone Wrestling and for this reason some well-known professional wrestlers such as Ron Killings , Claudio Castagnoli and Nigel McGuinness are also represented in the film as extras where they mostly can be found in the so-called "locker room", the break room behind the stage. Only the wrestler Dylan Summers alias Necro Butcher and Tommy Suede alias Tommy Rotten compete actively in a hardcore match against the film character "The Ram". Ernest Miller can be seen as "Ayatollah" in the final battle.

The film was shot in Philadelphia as well as in various locations in New Jersey . Filming began in January 2008 and ended on March 18, 2008. The filming took place over 35 days. The budget of the film is 6 million US dollars estimated.

The world premiere took place on September 5, 2008 at the 65th Venice International Film Festival , in which the film participated in competition. This was followed by other screenings at various film festivals . The movie was released in the USA on January 30, 2009 and in Germany on February 26, 2009. The film was shown in Switzerland from February 18, 2009. The film opened in Austria on February 27, 2009. On the opening weekend, the film grossed over US $ 200,000 in the US and had total revenues of US $ 26.2 million. Worldwide the film grossed 44.7 million US dollars. Fox Searchlight Pictures secured the North American marketing rights in 2008 for around 4 million US dollars at the Toronto International Film Festival .

The NES game "Wrestle Jam," which Randy plays with a boy next door in the film, never went on sale. It was developed especially for the film, whereby for reasons of authenticity director Aronofsky placed particular emphasis on the fact that it was actually playable in its entirety for the actors.

Afa Anoa'i trained Mickey Rourke and was responsible for the choreography of the wrestling matches. His daughter Vale Anoa'i can be seen in a cameo as a pharmacist . In a further cameo at the beginning of the film, the screenwriter Robert D. Siegel can be seen as a wrestling fan who receives an autograph from Ram.

Film music

Bruce Springsteen , who wrote the theme song The Wrestler , was involved in the film's soundtrack . He received a Golden Globe Award for the song.

Robinson's rematch against "Ayatollah" features the song Sweet Child o 'Mine by the US hard rock group Guns N' Roses as invasion music, which Axl Rose made available free of charge for use in the film. During Mickey Rourke's career as a professional boxer , he used the same track as invasion music.

On February 27, 2009, the soundtrack was released by Koch Records . It contains twelve music tracks with a total playing time of 55:59 minutes. Neither Bruce Springsteen's nor Guns N 'Roses tracks are featured on the soundtrack.

No. title Interpreter Duration
1. Bang Your Head (Metal Health) Quiet riot 5:33
2. Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone) Cinderella 5:52
3. Stuntin 'like my daddy Birdman & Lil Wayne 4:28
4th Don't walk away Firehouse 4:32
5. Soundtrack To A War: Welcome To Hell Rhino bucket 4:10
6th Blowin 'up Solomon 3:36
7th Mirror Dead Family 4:43
8th. Round and Round Rat 4:23
9. Dangerous Slaughter 3:48
10. I'm insane Rat 3:14
11. Balls To The Wall Accept 5:43
12. Animal Magnetism Scorpions 5:57

criticism

Stephen Farber wrote in The Hollywood Reporter on September 4, 2008 that the film was on the edge of sentimentality, but would not turn into a smack thanks to the strict direction and presentation.

Todd McCarthy wrote in Variety magazine on September 5, 2008 that Rourke was creating an “electrifying, humorous, deeply moving” portrait that was one of the “great iconic screen depictions” ( “Rourke creates a galvanizing, humorous, deeply moving portrait that instantly takes its place among the great, iconic screen performances " ). The story is told “simply and brilliantly” . Tomei is in an "emotionally open top form" .

Michael Althen said: “What acting method was for the Guinness Book of Records at Raging Bull , that was done at The Wrestler with a lifetime of commitment. If you look closely, you don't know what is more spooky. "

Christina Krisch wrote in the Kronen Zeitung on February 26, 2009 that the film respectfully shows a way of the cross and also a wrestler soul battered by the blows of life. The clown-like rearing up of the title hero in the ring would both captivate and disturb. The film is a fascinating loser ballad.

In February 2009, the OÖN said that this was the film Rourkes, which weighed his previous life in the balance, brought in his drawn face and his scarred body. The direction the film is headed may be as predictable as the outcome of a wrestling match.

Georg Seeßlen thought, "This guy is not one of those beautiful American losers who stoically stoic from one defeat to the next, who" won't let them get down "and to whom at least half of American literature is devoted, not to mention the cinema."

Michael Kienzl wrote on critic.de that Aronofsky had “finally overcome the playful staging of days gone by and made use of a straightforward narrative and a modest staging that was entirely dedicated to the plot and the main character. Regarding Rourke's past as a sex symbol of the 80s, the actor also shares something crucial with his character: Both seem to belong to a bygone era. "

Dominik Kamalzadeh, on the other hand, found "The film is a touching homage to a shrill subculture in which it is almost impossible to age with dignity."

Awards

At the Venice International Film Festival 2008, The Wrestler received the main prize of the festival with the Golden Lion . On January 11th, 2009 Mickey Rourke won a Golden Globe Award for the first time, namely the Golden Globe for his role in The Wrestler as best actor in a drama. On February 8, 2009, Rourke won the British BAFTA Award for Best Actor. Rourke and supporting actress Marisa Tomei received Oscar nominations. This was Rourke's first Oscar nomination.

The film won a total of 29 international film awards and was nominated for a further 17 awards.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b 65. Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica - In concorso ( Memento of the original from September 14, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed August 18, 2008 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.labiennale.org
  2. Jump up ↑ Release Notes for The Wrestler - Fame, Love, Pain . Voluntary self-regulation of the film industry , June 2009 (PDF; test number: 116 968 V / DVD / UMD).
  3. ↑ Cage makes some moves on 'Wrestler' in The Hollywood Reporter, October 12, 2007
  4. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j Internet Movie Database : Background information , accessed on August 18, 2008
  5. ↑ Variety : Tomei joins Aronofsky's "Wrestler" , Tatiana Siegel, February 11, 2008, accessed August 18, 2008
  6. ↑ Internet Movie Database : Filming Locations , accessed August 18, 2008
  7. ↑ a b c Internet Movie Database : Budget and Box Office Results
  8. ↑ a b c d e Internet Movie Database : Launch dates , accessed on August 18, 2008
  9. ↑ boxofficemojo.com: Box office results , accessed September 6, 2011.
  10. ↑ The Making Of Wrestle Jam: The Wrestler's Unsung Hero , Michael McWhertor, February 24, 2009
  11. ↑ New Musical Express : Bruce Springsteen pens song for wrestling film , September 4, 2008
  12. ↑ a b c Internet Movie Database : Nominations and Awards
  13. ↑ Rotten Tomatoes : Critic Reviews for The Wrestler ( Memento March 23, 2010 in the Internet Archive ), accessed September 7, 2008
  14. ^ Variety : Film Critics , Todd McCarthy, September 4, 2008, accessed November 10, 2008
  15. ↑ Michael Althen : Mickey Handsome. (No longer available online.) In: CARGO 01/2009. February 5, 2009, archived from the original on March 22, 2009 ; Retrieved February 27, 2009 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.cargo-film.de
  16. ^ Kronen Zeitung , February 26, 2009
  17. ^ "The Wrestler": A downfall as a relic in bright green leggings , February 26, 2009
  18. ↑ getidan.de: The Wrestler: The great failure , Georg Seeßlen
  19. ↑ critic.de: The Wrestler - Filmkritik , Michael Kienzl
  20. ↑ Der Standard: Between Wistfulness and Disenchantment , September 5, 2008
  21. ^ La Stampa : Venezia 65: Leone d'oro a "The Wrestler" , September 6, 2008
  22. ↑ Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung : Golden Lion for "The Wrestler" , September 7, 2008