the wrestler [A-]

moviemcpeake snippet: a great performance.  i think oprah may have said it best, you can't tell were mickey rourke ends and randy "the ram" begins. 

the film focuses on a washed up professional wrestler named randy "the ram" robinson.  it brought me back to my hulk hogan and randy "the macho man" savage WWF days.  yes, i did watch wwf.  randy just can't seem to let go of the ring.  he is at the end of his career (what is left of it) and he is desperately trying to fill his life, fill the void.

darren aronofsky (director, requiem for a dream [A+]) does another amazing job pulling out the raw human nature of his leading character and splashing it during each scene, each moment.  where I think the movie lacked, surprisingly, was with the other characters.  evan rachel wood, plays his estranged daughter and marisa tomei plays his stripper love interest.  there was something missing in both of their roles.  it wasn't the acting, perhaps the dialog, the portrayed emotions.  It was either void, predictable or just there.  but that of course just allowed for more focus on rourke and his spectacular portrayal of the wrestler.

if you grew up in the 80s or if you like catching the best performances of year this is a film to see.