The Wrestler

   Darren Aronofsky’s “The Wrestler” (2008) starring Mickey Rourke is the story of an aging wrestler past his prime dealing with his inner demons and failures in his life. The movie tells the story of Randy “The Ram” Robinson a wrestler who was popular in the 1980’s, now dealing with poverty and loneliness. By day Randy works at a grocery where he unloads boxes that come off the trucks. While at night Randy wrestles in small venues trying to get as much money as he can get to get by. After overdosing on Steroids and being told that he wouldn’t be able to wrestle again Randy is forced question his life and reflect on his past. The film depicts Randy’s redemption as he tries to reconnect with his daughter and his love for a stripper name Pam. The film depicts Randy as man who abused his body for many years and how over time its take in its toll on his life. The Film shows how Randy abuses body in the ring with the physical stunts that he does and shows Randy’s pain within his personal life where must deal his loneliness and failures. The Wrestler is an ultimately a movie of a man who is forced to deal with disconnection and alienation and of his redemption. It’s an examination of a man who tries to follow his dream but has to deal to the harsh reality of failure.

               The Cinematography in the movie is done with handheld camera to create the sense of realism. The film itself feels as If we are watching a documentary of Randy’s life. We become voyeurs as we examine and analyze Randy and his surroundings. It plays well with the film’s style in that we feel as though we are seeing into his life. The film also uses a lot of tracking shots and sequence shots. The camera mostly follows Randy as he walks through the wrestling world and in his personal life. We the audience move with Randy as he moves within the film and see the film through his eyes. The film also uses natural lighting as opposed to artificial lighting. This again is used to make the film seem as if we the audience are watching a documentary. If artificial lighting was used, it would take the audience out of the feeling we are watching a documentary and we would feel less like we are voyeurs watching Randy in his personal life.

   The film also boasts a unique cast; the director Darren Aronofsky puts together an amazing array of actors that create a deep connection with their characters. Mickey Rourke play Randy “The Ram” Robinson a broken down and washed up wrestler. He gives the film its soul and gives a performance of a broken down man who has abused his body for many years seeking redemption past mistakes. Randy in the ring is known as “The Ram” a hero and icon that the crowd cheers for, while outside of the ring Randy is a loser and a broken down man. Mickey Rourke was nominated for an Academy Award for best actor for his performance. Mickey himself dealt with many issues that his character faced. Mickey was blacklisted from Hollywood in the eighties due to his behavior. He was losing money and had dealt with alchol and drug abuse. This film much like the film shows his sort of redemption within Hollywood and his comeback. Mickey also looks a lot like a wrestler; He dyed his hair blonde and had bulked to play Randy “the Ram”. Evan Rachel Wood plays Randy’s daughter Stephanie who at first rejects but later accepts him in the movie. Wood’s chemistry with Rourke is one of the key parts of the film. The scenes with Randy and Stephanie plays heavily into Randy’s redemption in the movie. She plays her character as a young woman who feels betrayed by her father and feels broken because of it. She blames him for not being there and for abandoning her when she needed him. This plays towards the theme of loneliness that the film lays out. Randy’s conversation with his daughter is integral to Randy reconnection with his past life. Marisa Tomei plays Pam aka Cassidy, a stripper past her prime who finds a connection Randy. The two characters are portrayed broken down pieces of meat that the no one cares about anymore. Pam has to deal with the fact that she’s getting old and that clients no longer want her. Pam like Randy is a parent too, she has a six year old son that she has difficult time trying to feed and clothe. She like Randy isn’t able to be there for her child. Randy and Pam both see each other in their eyes and find a personal connection. They both have to deal with their age and how life is slowly passing them by.

                  A main element of the film is the Wrestler’s soundtrack. The soundtrack has mostly songs from the eighties. This is important to note due to Randy’s success in wrestling happened in that decade. The soundtrack consists of artist such as Guns N Roses, Quiet Riot and, Firehouse to name a few. The music plays into driving home the important themes of the film. One key scene is the song that plays over Randy’s final entrance to the ring is “Sweet Child of Mine” by Guns N Roses. This song plays into the scene before it when Pam tells Randy that she is there for him At one point in the movie Randy calls Kurt Cobain “a pussy” for destroying the 80’s. The reason for this is that Randy was his most successful in the 80’s, after this time his career went down hill which is presumed to be in the 90’s. Randy is really blaming Cobain for own downfall and self destruction. But the most important song in the film is the theme song by “the boss” Bruce Springsteen called “The Wrestler”. The song is a ballad to Randy “The Ram” Robinson. The lyrics of the song asks if you ever seen one legged dog and a trick pony. The lyrics then say if you’ve seen this then you’ve seen me. It tries to imply that Randy is this one legged dog and trick pony. It is a metaphor to show that Randy is broken man who used his body for entertainment and show. The song implies that Randy is broken down dog that has lost his way. Springsteen’s melancholy voice gives a gritty tone to the song and plays well to the feeling of the film.

  In conclusion the Wrestler tells the story of a man who tries to follow the American dream and fails. A man for the ten to twenty minutes in the ring becomes a hero for the working class but is then forced to deal with the failure of his life. Darren Aronfsky’s crafts a self portrait of man who fell from grace and wants to receive redemption and a sense of belonging. A man who followed the American Dream, and went head first off the top turnbuckle.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRUEKJIcvbo