The Wrestler

Randy “The Ram” Robinson (Mickey Rourke) is the textbook definition of down and out. As his professional wrestling career is floundering, his health is deteriorating, his personal relationships are dying, and his addictions are growing, The Ram seeks solace in the one thing he can, the roar of the fans and the thrill of performing.

 

The fact of the matter is that The Ram is washed up. He barely has anything left in the tank as he tours the underground wrestling circuit, in the hopes of returning to the household name status he had once achieved, and more importantly it is a futile attempt at paying the bills.

 

It becomes apparent that one of the only reasons that he is even kept around is due to what is left of his name recognition, the respect that he gained through his years of perfuming, and to serve as a mentor for young wrestlers trying to make it in the business.

 

For every failure that Randy has had trying to resurrect his career in wrestling he has failed twice as bad at home. The last family member he has, his daughter, will barely acknowledge his existence, let alone confide in him. His lacking in her life growing up has caused her to have a deep disdain for men. Randy even jokes, half seriously; that he thinks his daughter might be a lesbian, but it also proves that he knows nothing about her. He has no idea when her birthday is, what clothes she likes, what music she is into, or even where she goes to school.

 

With no place left to turn Randy looks towards a stripper (Marisa Tomei) for guidance, support and companionship. She is all he knows, he has spent more time with her over the years than he has with his family, and she is normalcy and stability as far as he is concerned. Even this relationship turns rocky, and Randy turns back to his one true love wrestling his one true love, and in a last ditch effort, while ignoring doctors concerns, he takes a rematch against a former rival in an attempt to prove his worth.

 

The film seemingly moves at a snails pace, although at the end it seems as if it ended in light speed. I think this was done intentionally and it makes you drag on with Randy’s never ending life full of heartbreaks and disappointments and you truly feel as if you are going on this never ending joyless voyage with him. Then as the film wraps up you feel as if it all came and went far too quickly, just like it felt for Randy when the fame and stardom, and his life left him behind.

 

Rourke is outstanding and definitely deserves consideration if not a gold statue for his performance in this one. It truly is the performance of a lifetime and one that should not be missed. I give it 4 stars out of 4.

Gran Torino

Clint Eastwood is back! In front of the camera that is. After winning Oscars for Mystic River and Million Dollar Baby (in which he had a secondary role), Eastwood comes storming back to the gun wielding, tobacco chewing, backside-kicking renegade, we all came to know and love.

 

Eastwood plays Walt Kowalski, a Korean War veteran who is having more than a little trouble keeping up with an ever-changing society. He dwells in a Detroit suburb that is being taken over by gangs and more unfortunately for Walt, the dreaded minorities.

 

After his wife’s death, his children, attempt to convince him to move to a retirement community. Walt will have nothing to do with it, although he is none to happy about the new Hmong neighbors. They traipse through his yard, have large loud get-togethers, and an occasional brawl occurs. The last straw comes however, when Tao, the young next-door neighbor, tries unsuccessfully to be initiated into a gang by stealing Walt’s prized Ford Gran Torino.

 

As is custom in Hmong culture, Tao’s mother grants Walt her boy’s services for a time in order to work off the shame that he has brought their family. It is then that Walt starts to have a change of heart. He begins reluctantly to learn about their culture, and grows a bond with this family. When the gang comes back to seek revenge for Tao’s failed attempt and his refusal of a second chance initiation, Walt takes it upon himself to defend the family at all cost.

 

Eastwood’s performance is spectacular. There are bits and pieces reminiscent of The Outlaw Josey Wales, The Pale Rider, Unforgiven, and many others. He is witty, compelling, and downright funny at times. The story itself in many ways mirrors his career, as a veteran of the trade who is nearing the end, trying to keep up with changing times, but letting us know that there is still gas in the tank for another fight.

 

The film does not come without a downside however. As brilliant as Eastwood’s performance is, the rest of the cast does little to help. Everyone from the neighbors, to the priest, to his own family, were poorly cast. They weren’t believable, their lines felt forced, and in many cases they didn’t seem natural in front of the camera. Luckily Eastwood shines, so much of that is overlooked, and only slightly dampens the experience. Overall this is a definite must see. 3 stars out of 4. 

The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button tells the story of man who was born old and gets younger as the years pass. Benjamin (Brad Pitt) finds it hard to fit in with society due to the fact that he looks like an old man, but thinks like a small child. As time progresses Benjamin experiences life in reverse order, or at least it appears that way due to the apparent age at which he goes through it.

 

At an early age everything seems to go wrong for him. As he is born it causes his mothers death, and his abnormal appearance causes his father to leave him at nursing home. Benjamin grows up in the nursing home and in many ways he looks and acts like the people living there while growing up, and it isn’t until he is able to take care of himself that he moves out.

 

It is while at the nursing home that Benjamin meets his love interest Daisy (Cate Blanchett). It is apparent even at an early age that Daisy has an interest in Benjamin as well, however their relationship is complicated due to the ages that they appear to be. The story then turns to a journey for both characters. A journey of soul searching, allowing both of them to find out exactly who it is they really are. Then as they joke in the film they meet up with each other in the middle as Benjamin is getting younger and Daisy is getting older.

 

The story on the surface is interesting enough, and the cinematography is close to great. Brad Pitt’s performance is possibly one of his best to date however the rest of the film leaves much to be desired. The plot is extremely cluttered and separate and sometimes unnecessary storylines are added which serve little purpose other than adding length to the close to three hour film. In addition the clutter prevents the viewer from making real lasting connections with characters in the film which otherwise could be very likable.

 

Blanchett’s performance provides a good compliment to Pitt, however her role is left with plot holes and her story is somewhat unbelievable. Daisy has constant and drastic changes of heart and it seems as if every time her character enters she is a completely different person than the last time we saw her. It is also hindered by the fact that her aging process is far less apparent and not nearly as believable as his. Daisy looks the same age from about 20 to 50, and little is done to persuade you that she is aging at all until near the very end.

 

In the end a sure Oscar nominee in many categories disappointed. A great cast and director, along with a classic story can’t come close to living up to the hype. By the end with an attempt at throwing in a Hurricane Katrina reference, it became certain that the direction the script was going was to make an extremely confusing attempt to cover far to large of a time frame, and simply moved through too many plot twists. All in all the film is worth a look but don’t expect brilliance. 2 stars out of 4