1001 Films To Watch Before I Die: The Wrestler

On the surface this could have just been another film in the long line of cliched sports films about a former great star who is given one final shot at the big time. Thanks to a terrific performance from its leading man and Darren Aronofsky's decision to take a pseudo-documentary feel to the cinematography means that it manages to transcend the cliches to create a genuinely affecting movie that is not only one of the best in the sports genre but also the best film about wrestling (but that probably isn't too difficult).

I will admit at the beginning that I was a huge fan of wrestling when I was growing up (and I still keep an interest in it despite being unable to follow it as much since I don't have Sky Sports at my flat). This meant that my enjoyment of The Wrestler probably differed from the average moviegoer who had no interest in the antics of Hulk Hogan et all.

And so I'll review the film from the aspect of a wrestling fan rather than a film fan. After all there are loads of reviews about the film. Check Rotten Tomatoes to read some of them.


During the nineties when the popularity of WWE/WWF (damn pandas) was at its peak, there was the debate about whether wrestling was "fake" and inspired more heated debates than whether Santa Claus was real or not.
Yes, wrestling is fake, in that the results of the matches are pre-determined but it is very real in terms of the punishment that their bodies go through during the matches. And to the credit of the film it doesn't shy away from these aspects. This expose into the "real" world of wrestling is the film that Vince McMahon would not have wanted you to see.
On one side we see the backstage conversations between the wrestlers as the plot out the matches and the big spots they will use to wow the crowds, then it is followed by the aftermath of a Extreme Rules match where they are getting stitches and superglued after using barbed wire and the old "blading" trick, complete with authentic "holy shit" chants.
Mickey Rourke is fantastic as Randy The Ram, bringing his own past into the role whilst echoing certain characters from the world of wrestling including the Ultimate Warrior and Ric Flair.
He shows the emotional and physical pain that wrestlers put their bodies through, sometimes long after they really should have retired and the fame is gone and they wrestle for a few hundred fans in a community centre.
It is the reaction from the crowd that drives them on, as witnessed in the final moving scene where Randy addresses the fans before wrestling one last match that might kill him. It is all the more painful when thinking of real wrestlers like Eddie Guerrero and Davey Boy Smith who died at a young age of heart attacks, possibly brought on by the pressures on their bodies and steroid use.

Here is the first top 5 list, obviously inspired by High Fidelity which also inspired the name of the blog, and not taken from the feature currently on BBC Film 2010!

Top 5: Performances by a wrestler in a film

1. Jesse Ventura in PREDATOR
This was a no contest in terms of the top spot, there could only be one winner and that goes to Jesse "The Body" Ventura. Not only is he as physically imposing as Arnold, but he actually became a US Governer before the hulking Austrian but he nearly manages to steal the film from him as Blain, a Navy Seal so hard that he carries one of the coolest weapons in the history of cinema, Ole' Painless: a friggin' chain gun that is normally attached to the side of a helicopter.
He also gets some of the best lines in the film including the immortal "I ain't got time to bleed".

2. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in BE COOL
The best thing by a country mile in a bad film that was a terrible sequel to the great GET SHORTY. The performance proved to Hollywood that he could act outside of the squared circle, but it wasn't too much of a stretch for him as he played a Samoan bodyguard who wants to be an actor and has a trick of raising an eyebrow. Well Elmore Leonard did write the character based on The Rock!

3. Rowdy Roddy Piper in THEY LIVE
He came here to chew bubble gum and kick ass and he's all out of bubble gum. One of the first wrestlers to make the crossover to movies after Hulk Hogan and he brings that fast talking sass that worked in Piper's Pit to this battle against an alien invasion which features one of the greatest fight scenes of all time.

4. Andre The Giant in THE PRINCESS BRIDE
Nicknamed the Eighth Wonder Of The World due to his size, he was never the most nimble of wrestlers but his bulk and presence were perfect for Fezzik, the hulking brute with a heart of gold in this fairytale classic.

5. George The Animal Steele in ED WOOD
The only performance on the list where the wrestler plays a wrestler, Steele played Tor Johnson who became part of Ed Wood's cast and crew during the years that would make such classics as Plan 9 From Outer Space.

So what do you think? Agree? Disagree? Mortified by the lack of Hulk Hogan on the list? Let me know, feedback always appreciated.

1001 Films To Watch Before *I* Die

Well it has been two months since I completed the epic (500) Films Of Empire challenge... and to be quite honest, I have missed it!

I have been working so much recently that I've had hardly any time to watch and enjoy films, and that needs to change.

So I have decided to work my way through the 1001 Films To Watch Before You Die as my next foray into the film challenge world.

Now before you all tell me I'm crazy, I have a much better timescale for this one i.e. before I die, which I can only hope is a long time off yet. Also anything that I have already watched as part of (500) Films of Empire will count.

Every film watched will be reviewed and in the spirit of High Fidelity, I'll throw in a Top 5 list based on an aspect of the film.

District Mine - An Ace In The Hole

Today's big news story is the rescue of the 33 Chilean miners who have been trapped in a cave-in for what seems like forever.  Now while it is great news that they are finally getting out, the way my mind works is that it immediately reminded me of one of the films that I had watched for (500) Films of Empire called Ace In The Hole.  It concerned an unscrupulous out-of-work journalist who was first at the scene of a man trapped in a cave-in and delayed and manipulated the rescue attempts in order that he could build the story to sell to the press.

Now of course I'm not saying that this is the case here but it does have a hint of life imitating art imitating life, with Sky News apparently having a countdown from 33 to 1 as the miners come out.

It is a forgotten gem of a film that anyone who has been following the current news events should watch.  It is tough to track down but is available on iTunes.

385 - Ace In The Hole - 4 stars

As I head towards the finishing line, I am seeing a lot of the highly rated so called 'classics' of cinema, so it is nice that the Top 500 can still throw up a relatively unseen gem like Ace In The Hole.

Also called The Big Carnival it revolves around Tatum, a ruthless journalist who exploits the situation when a man gets trapped in a cave-in so that it becomes a media circus that he has control over.

There seems to be a theme running through this list that all the films that deal with journalism, depict journalist as unscrupulous, amoral douchebags who will do anything to get ahead (Sweet Smell Of Success, Network).

Now we all this type of story.  A heartless cynic exploits someone for their own advantage before eventually revealing a heart of gold and learns the error of their ways.

But in the hands of Billy Wilder, who also wrote and directed Double Indemnity and Sunset Boulevard which hardly show people as beacons of light, and Kirk Douglas, that character arc never seems like coming before it will be too late.

Douglas delivers another great performance and has terrific screen presence.  Tatum is a nasty piece of work; self-absorbed, he exploits people, not afraid to slap a woman, a hard drinker and totally heartless, but Douglas does his best to make the audience empathise and connect with his character nontheless.

To say anymore about the story could risk spoiling the film, so instead just seek out this cracking little gem of a film and another example of the old saying "They don't make 'em like that anymore".

Ten reasons why you should "LIKE" The Social Network

Initially I had quite a bit of sceptisism about The Social Network, or as most people simply refer to it "the Facebook movie". After all, most films based on computer games are terrible so what hope could there be for a film based on a computer website?

Well the odds have been well and truly defied, as David Fincher has delivered one of, if not the film of the year. Inception currently is my number one film but Social Network may eclipse it after a second viewing.

Below are ten reasons why everyone should get past the stigma of "the movie about Facebook" and watch The Social Network.

1. The opening scene

It is the best opening scene since Inglourious Basterds and these five minutes are better than most of the films that have been released in 2010. It tells you everything you need to know about Zuckerberg and that the man who created the biggest social network in the world cannot interact socially himself. The crackling dialogue that cracks back and forth between Zuckerberg and his girlfriend who is breaking up with him has the feeling of a Forties film that many argue "they don't write them like that anymore", but this proves that they can.

2. Aaron Sorkin

The man responsible for the script and the wonderful dialogue is the man behind The West Wing and should start using his talent to write his acceptance speech for the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. Anyone who can deliver a 160 page screenplay that zips by in 2 hours deserves the plaudits (the rule of thumb for screenplay is that each page equates to a minute of screen time).

3. Jesse Eisenberg

He is the thinking man's Michael Cera and with his portrayal of Mark Zuckerberg is fantastic and should mean that he will escape Cera's fate of being accused of always playing himself. In the past Jesse has always played likeable, nervous geeks but Zuckerberg (in this film) is not a particularly likeable character and Eisenberg really raises his game to give him a coldness to his eyes that while emotionless on the outside, you can see that internally he is processing things like a computer.

4. David Fincher

He has really matured and this is his most complete film since Zodiac. He has forgone his traditional love of striking, complicated visual trickery that overwhelmed Panic Room and Button and focused on the story to deliver a drama that moves at the pace of a thriller and feels like truly effortless filmmaking.

5. The score
Trent Reznor was responsible for one of the most famous music cues in recent film history with his "Hello Zepp" cue from Saw which has been used in every one of the 102 sequels since, but working with Atticus Ross, they have delivered a fantastic electronic score that generates the hum and buzz of computers and evokes memories of the score to Fight Club, also by Fincher.

6. The new Spider-Man, Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and that kid from N*Sync are in it
Use this as a chance to see the talents of Andrew Garfield, Rooney Mara who will take on these iconic roles next year, and also proof that JT can actually act, proving a great choice to play the sleazy, seductive Sean Parker whose influence drives a wedge between Mark and Eduardo.

7. Citizen Kane

Some reviewers have made comparisons to "the greatest film ever made" which is a very risky thing to do, but I believe they are valid. Like Kane, this is a story about a man made up from testimonies of other people so you never get to know the real Mark Zuckerberg. It even has a nice Rosebud style moment at the end of the film that might explain his motivations.

8. The Winklevoss Twins.

It has been said that CGI should only be used to enhance the story, not become the story and in The Social Network, Fincher has one of the best and most subtle uses of CGI in recent memory. The twins are credited as Armie Hammer and Josh Pence but really these identical twins both have the head, face and voice of Armie Hammer which was digitally grafted onto the body of Josh Pence. Watch the film and you will hardly be able to notice the effect.

9. It makes scenes of people sitting around using computers interesting and exciting!

10. It shows that geeks who create websites getting success, money and getting laid.

I hope that the same is true for myself and my blog!

Unstoppable... but only for 100 minutes, therefore it will eventually stop!

Potential False Advertising Alert: If Unstoppable's running time is even slightly over or under 100 minutes I will be extremely annoyed!

The Show Must Go On...

Now that my (500) Films of Empire challenge is over, I am spending most of my spare time rehearsing for a couple of musical theatre productions and am using my blog in a shameless attempt to sell tickets to the shows!

First up I will be playing Lt. Brannigan in Guys and Dolls at Aberdeen Arts Centre from Wed 20th - Sat 23rd October at 7.30pm.

Tickets can be bought from Aberdeen Box Office.

Then a couple of weeks later I'll be part of the cast of The Producers performing at His Majesty's Theatre from Wed 3rd - Sat 6th November at 7.30pm.

I guarantee that this will be one of the best amateur productions that you will ever see.

If you need any more convincing there will be a giant dancing swastika and I will be dressed as a Nazi, an old lady and a member of the Village people, all in one evening.

Tickets for that can also be bought from the box office.

Hopefully I will see some of you there.

I have a bad feeling about this...

Last night I finally managed to watch Fanboys, the Star Wars comedy that had been delayed for several years thanks to the Galactic Empire otherwise known as Harvey Weinstein.

The story concerns a group of die-hard Star Wars fans who have drifted apart but join forces to travel across America in 1998 to steal a copy of The Phantom Menace so their friend who is dying of cancer can see it before he dies.

What follows is a standard teenage road trip movie where a large percentage of the usual "dick and fart jokes" and naked breasts are substituted for geeky Star Wars references, celebrity cameos and an on-going battle with a group of Trekkies.

This film should have been a Star Wars geek's wet dream, the movie that any fan would have wanted to make.

But unfortunately it isn't.

The film struggles to find a cohesive tone with the main culprit being the cancer part of the storyline. It drifts in and out of the film and doesn't provide enough emotional weight until too late in the film. This is due to interference by Harvey who wanted to excise the entire subplot.

However what was most disappointing was the discovery that my love affair with Star Wars is over :-(

I should have loved all the repeated lines, using the Jedi mind trick to get a girl to remove her clothes, et all, but it all fell a little flat with me.

The problem was that while trying to evoke the nostalgia of how we all loved the original trilogy, it just brought to the surface all the feelings of disappointment of the final results of the prequels.

That being said, it did have a fantastic final line as the group finally sit down to watch The Phantom Menace, one of the guys turns to the others and says "Dude, what if it sucks?"... and there is the bonus of seeing Kristen Bell dressed as Princess Leia in the slave girl bikini.