- On January 5, Wrestling-Online.com London correspondent Dan Ambrose attended the press screening of "The Wrestler" in Leicester Square. Below is his report.


Monday January 5th saw the eagerly anticipated new film ‘The Wrestler’ role into London for the UK Premiere in Leicester Square. Beforehand, I was invited along to an exclusive screening for the press and BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) members and given the chance to talk to the film’s star, Mickey Rourke.

Whilst wandering through the streets of Soho, I wasn’t sure if the tingling feeling in my fingers was down to the excitement of being one of the first Brits to see the film or a by-product of the sub-zero temperatures. Either way, it was safe to say that I was greatly looking forward to the first wrestling-related presentation to hit the big screen since the funny, but equally forgettable Nacho Libre.

Imagine my disappointment when I reached the front of the press queue only to be told that my name wasn’t on ‘The List’. I was gutted! I was told to join another line, to see if I’d been included on a separate guest list, and once again, the answer came back negative.

It was at this point that my guest, (incidentally, a non-wrestling fan) consoled me: “We can always head to Chinatown and get some food instead”. Now I like Chinese food as much as the next guy but I had come out to see ‘The Wrestler’ and the all-you-can-eat buffet was still going to be there in three hours time.

A few phone calls later to Colin, the Editor at Wrestling-Online.com and Charlotte at the PR company dealing with the screening and I was assured that I was definitely on ‘The List’. Once again, I joined press queue that I was in only ten minutes before and this time the jobsworth holding the clipboard found my name- right at the top of the list! Result! No apologies later and myself and my guest, headed down into the screening room to take our seats.

Before the lights dimmed I took a look around to see if I recognised any other journalists from the world of wrestling. The answer was a no, but I did notice the star of Channel 4’s ‘Fonejacker’ Kayvan Novak- A closet wrestling fan perhaps?

The film itself has already been reviewed on this site by my colleague in Los Angeles Joseph Palreiro, so I’ll do my best not to cover the same ground that he has.

As the opening credits play we’re taken on a whirlwind tour of the career of Randy ‘The Ram’ Robinson. Countless flyers and show posters from the 1980’s, overlaid with the sound of grand introductions from wrestling announcers show us that Robinson was a huge main event star ‘back in the day’.

The film fast forwards twenty years and we see The Ram looking rather more sheepish, changing alone in the back room of a school gymnasium- it’s made very clear that fame and perhaps fortune haven’t necessarily been good to the man who once sold out Madison Square Garden with a headline match against ‘The Ayatollah’.

One of the first things that hit me about the film is the way that it’s shot. Being often freehand, you could be mistaken for thinking you were watching a documentary. I’m sure I won’t be the only person to make a comparison to Barry Blaustein’s ‘Beyond The Mat’, and identify elements of Mick Foley, Terry Funk and New Jack in Rourke’s character.

As the story progresses, we see just how bad things have got for The Ram. Locked out of his trailer for not paying his rent, the ‘superstar’ is forced to sleep in the back of his van. We also see the lengths he goes to keep his flagging ‘career’ going. A diet of steroids and painkillers combined with a trip to the local tanning salon are all part of his routine, not forgetting his regular day job at a supermarket, supplementing his pitiful wages that he now makes wrestling on the American Indies.

It’s easy to see why Vince McMahon was reportedly unhappy with the film, it doesn’t exactly portray the wrestling industry to be whiter than white, and whilst the film makes no direct reference to any of the ‘big leagues’ in the wrestling world, any smart fan out there wouldn’t have any trouble in naming at least ten wrestlers whose career path hasn’t veered too far from ‘The Rams’.

It’s not long before we see Robinson, trying to form a relationship with his stripper of choice, Cassidy. In her late thirties she’s considered ‘too old’ by many of her potential customers but Randy shows his soft spot for her. I’d like to think that Randy and Cassidy share an empathetic bond. Both, ply their trade in professions where you’re expected to leave your morals at the door, and put yourself at the mercy of your public and in both cases, age has certainly had a negative effect on business.

Once again, I’m conscious, that this doesn’t become just another film review, so I’ll refrain from taking you through the whole plotline. What I will say is that the film is an amazing piece of work. Darren Aronofsky (Director and Producer) has created a captivating and accurate window into the world of a one-time wrestling superstar. As for Mickey Rourke, his casting for this movie can only be described as pure genius. There is no one better suited to the role, and to think that Nicholas Cage was originally cast as The Ram makes me shudder- no disrespect to the man, but once you see the film you’ll see what I mean, it just wouldn’t have worked!

Rourke’s dedication to the part was obviously immense. Spending four months in New York under the tutelage of wrestling legend Afa Anoai and squeezing in extra sessions before shoots became the norm. When asked about his thoughts on wrestling when he was asked to do the film he said: “I didn’t really have a whole lot of respect for wrestling, cos it’s a pre-arranged sport, pre-choreographed kinda sport and I didn’t think you really had to be that fit, I didn’t think there was a lot of honour in that sport.” Evidently, that all changed once the training started. “After my third trip to the hospital I started to change my mind about wrestling- these guys really take the bumps! I had three MRIs in two months!” Over seven months, Rourke would gain 27lbs of muscle for the role, he described having to eat a lot and do push-ups as a “pain in the ass!...I hadn’t worked that hard in more than a decade.”

The wrestling industry has been notorious for giving outsiders the cold shoulder when it comes to exploring the exploits of the trade, I was curious as to whether Mickey had experienced any hostility from anyone in the business whilst making the film. He said: “One of the nicest things that happened was we had a premiere in Los Angeles and all the old school guys came to the premiere and they embraced the movie, there was Ric Flair, he’s like a God of wrestlers…. Rowdy Roddy Piper had tears in his eyes. At the end of the day when these guys reach a certain age they put them out to pasture, the majority are lost souls, it’s all they live for, like actors they have a hard time getting older.”

In closing, you need to see this film, incidentally, my guest, (the non-wrestling fan) loved it also. The film delves deep enough into the wrestling business so as not to appear vague but is never patronising and retains it’s gritty and realistic quality throughout.

Nominated for three Golden Globes, The Wrestler is released in the UK and Europe on January 16th 2009.