The Wrestler

I wouldn't say this movie is great, nor the cinematography is good, but to see those wrestling legends of the former AWA at a time where wrestling was purely less artificial as it is today (even WWE's Vince McMahon late dad is there) is a treat. And Ed Asner really shooting in Minneapolis (instead of some Hollywood studio passing for this city's TV station...) is a change.

Most of the wrestling demonstrations here are interesting, reminescent of the old-style wrestling that most of us real wrestling fans miss today. Sad that the dramatic part and the script is poor, but the wrestling moves and seeing those old pros (majority is still alive today) are the only things saving this movie for being a total bore.

See it to realize that wrestling was even more fun on these days than all the superficial shows that are shown today. When Pro Wrestling was pro wrestling at its best !

...first off, if you were hoping for a RAGING BULL or REQUIEM FOR A HEAVYWEIGHT about pro wrestling, this picture doesn't even step towards the goal, let alone come close. Ed Asner and Elaine Giftos are fine comic actors, but they're better sampled respectively on any given "Mary Tyler Moore" episode or in GAS-S-S-S. No, this picture is strictly for fans of the Minneapolis-based American Wrestling Association of the late '60s and early '70s. That promotion was owned and largely starred Verne Gagne, who was one of the greatest ring acrobats of all time. Gagne apparently had a commitment in the 1960s from Minneapolis theater owner W.R. Frank to make a theatrical film, essentially using the wrestlers in the AWA (as well as announcers Marty O'Neill and Rod Tronguard) as the main cast. The thing wasn't pulled together until several years after Frank died, even though his name appears on the credits; it's likely that Gagne himself also produced and wrote this movie while only taking the screen credits as executive producer and actor...

...after the movie made the circuit of drive-ins and four-wall theaters in the Upper Midwest towns where the AWA held their house shows, Gagne started claiming he made this movie to prove that wrestlers couldn't act. That was strictly a kayfabe bit to try to keep the marks in the fold, as latter-day wrestlers like Roddy Piper and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson have proved some of them can act up a storm on a movie set. But THE WRESTLER doesn't even give Asner a whole lot to work with, let alone Billy Robinson or Superstar Billy Graham, just to mention two of the top wrestlers in the AWA at the time. But if, like me, you were a fan of the Saturday night mayhem Gagne committed to video screens in '74, all the old ring faces are themselves worth the hour and a half it takes to watch this one...

Mike Bullard the Champ is still on top and beating all contenders but is getting on in years. The promoter/lead character in this film is looking for a replacement and hopes he has found him a young talent named Billy Taylor.

Interesting curio from the 70s...a kayfabe pro wrestling film! As a lifelong wrestling fan I was quite amused to see real wrestlers were used in this film in their well-known wrestling personas. Billy Robinson appears as Billy Taylor and legendary AWA wrestling champ Verne Gagne appears as Mike Bullard. To an oldtime/old school wrestling fan, the film is fun to watch just to spot all the grapplers and to these fans the story will resonate. However, most everyone else will notice that the majority of the wrestlers involved here really cannot act and will probably find the wrestling scenes a bore and lose interest.

Quite simply, this movie should be remembered as a pure piece of Americana at its finest. In 1973 wrestling promoter Verne Gagne took some of the best wrestlers in the pro wrestling world and got them to make a movie about pro wrestling. The movie, 30 years in retrospect, looks more like a cheeky documentary produced in the classic "kayfabe" style (the traditional promotion of wrestling as a sport, cloaked in mystique and tradition).

The wrestling talent is pure, raw and unadulterated - featuring stars such as Dick the Bruiser, the Crusher, Nick Bockwinkle, Ric Flair, Dory Funk Jr, and "Dirty" Dick Murdoch, Dusty Rhodes and many others - all young and in just starting to hit their peaks. And in a rare appearance, Vincent J. McMahon, the progenitor of the now popular WWF/WWE - promoting pro wrestling in the old style, before the glitz, glamor and entertainment hoopla surrounding it. Verne Gagne himself also appears in this movie as one of its main stars, putting himself over the competition in his typical egotistical, yet entertaining, style.

But this movie isn't all wrestling. There's a good story to be told here, essentially giving the viewer the feel as if they've cut right into the middle of a traditional wrestling program. There is no real start or ending to this story, but it is another chapter in the daily struggle of faces and heels.

Ed Asner is the main star here, his acting ability along with his middle-age looks are a perfect fit for the character, he really does look like a wrestling promoter trying to keep his business together and defending it from the outside corrupting influences of a local mobster (played by legendary wrestler & commentator "Slammin'" Sam Menacker).

There is no comparison to any other wrestling movie made, this one is definitely the undisputed heavyweight champion!

I have been a fan of pro wrestling for well over 15 years and have seen other wrestling movies like "Body Slam" and "Grunt-The Wrestling Movie". I had always heard of "The Wrestler" starring Ed Asner and of course I could never find a copy to rent. Imagine my surprise when I found several copies of it in a $3 bin at a local Wal-Mart! Well, needless to say I bought it, even though I had never seen the flick. It is a great movie for all wrestling fans!