5 Best And 5 Worst Portrayals Of Pro Wrestling In Movies And TV
Ranging in quality from "Hulkamania" to "Gobbledegooker", which portrayals are worth a watch?
Transcript
00:00 At times, wrestling is used as a bit of a poorly developed afterthought on the big and
00:04 small screen.
00:05 It may look like it and it may sound like it, but it ain't wrestling.
00:09 But when taken seriously, films and shows about professional wrestling illustrate the
00:13 grit and toughness of that lifestyle.
00:16 We see the toll the business takes on the human body and human relationships, so we've
00:20 taken the time to separate the gold from the gunk, so to speak.
00:24 Half of this list warrants a "this is awesome" chant, while the others most definitely deserve
00:28 a "what?"
00:29 Gareth here from WhatCulture Wrestling and here are the 5 best and 5 worst portrayals
00:34 of pro wrestling in movies and television.
00:37 5.
00:38 On the worst, Bodyslam One critic stated that Bodyslam was a "mediocre
00:42 comedy that will appeal to wrestling fans far more than anyone else."
00:46 Bad news, it doesn't appeal to wrestling fans either.
00:48 As an actor, Rowdy Roddy Piper elevated films like Hell Comes to Frogtown and cult classic
00:53 They Live.
00:54 Sadly, it was beyond his abilities to elevate or salvage this ultra 80s cheese fest.
01:00 Bodyslam is the tale of a downtrodden music executive who decides to try his hand at wrestling
01:05 promotion.
01:06 What could go wrong?
01:07 That promoter is played by minor 80s star and member of the A-Team Dirk Benedict.
01:12 Visually, Bodyslam looks like it was meant to be an old episode of Hardcastle and McCormick
01:16 though.
01:17 Captain Lou Albano appearing as himself adds a touch of charm.
01:20 Not his, nor any of the other wrestling cameos can overcome a hacky script.
01:25 The beats and story arc are all very predictable for a 1986 comedy it must be said.
01:29 The one upside of Bodyslam is that the in-ring wrestling is pretty damn good, due to actual
01:34 pro wrestlers being cast.
01:36 WWE alums Barbarian, Tonga Kid and The Samoans all appear in the film.
01:40 The juice though is not worth this 92 minute squeeze.
01:43 5.
01:44 Best Glow Netflix took one of the silliest wrestling
01:47 programs of all time and made it a legitimately interesting dramedy about the 1980s ladies
01:52 promotion Glow, Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling.
01:56 Glow earns its accolades because ultimately it still presented the wrestling business
01:59 in a serious light.
02:01 Yes, the women had corny gimmicks and iffy ring skills, but Glow takes the viewers on
02:05 a journey.
02:06 As the ladies and manager Sam Sylvia, played flawlessly by comic Mark Merron, begrudgingly
02:11 fall in love with the industry, the audience takes that emotional voyage with them.
02:16 Actors Alison Brie and Betty Gilpin present a great example of how personalities and relationships
02:20 on camera can be a stark contrast from reality.
02:23 Watching the wrestlers develop their gimmicks, brainstorm ideas and navigate the mood swings
02:27 of the often grumpy Sam, keep the audience engaged in between moments of ring action.
02:32 Sadly, however, Glow wasn't renewed by Netflix after three seasons, despite winning three
02:36 Primetime Emmy Awards.
02:38 4.
02:39 The Worst Young Rock Where to begin with this Young Rock, eh?
02:42 In concept, a semi-autobiographical show about the journey of young Dwayne Johnson seems
02:47 bulletproof.
02:48 In execution, viewers are given a ham-fisted retelling of Rock's life as a child, high
02:52 school student and college football player before becoming the Great One.
02:56 This is set against a backdrop of a near future where The Rock is running for president and
03:00 Randall Park is a bootlicking, awkward interviewer.
03:03 The problem with this idea is that a lot of history has to be glowed up to fit the narrative
03:07 of the show.
03:08 Many of the wrestlers portrayed in the show did not work for the Maivia family during
03:11 that time, or at all for that matter, and several other historical accounts were erased
03:16 or changed in order to better present Rocky and the family's image in the show.
03:20 4.
03:21 The Best No Holds Barred To fully appreciate No Holds Barred, it helps
03:25 to be a fan of 1980s WWE.
03:28 Full of all the larger-than-life action and cheesy dialogue one would expect, Hulk Hogan
03:32 leads this flick past being bad and loops around to the point of being so bad that it's
03:36 actually pretty good.
03:37 Flexing his acting chops, larger-than-life wrestling champion Hulk Hogan plays the lead
03:41 role of Rip.
03:42 The seemingly unbeatable Rip faces his biggest challenge and opponent, Zeus.
03:46 As the film was produced by WWE, Hogan and WWE Chairman Vince McMahon had creative control
03:51 of the script.
03:52 Released in 1989, No Holds Barred fully embraces kayfabe and gives us only what we are supposed
03:57 to see.
03:58 Legendary character actor Kurt Fuller is the one who steals the show as the wonderfully
04:02 smarmy TV executive, Brel though.
04:04 Brel plans on starting his own wrestling show, but when Rip refuses to work for Brel, he
04:08 enacts an evil plan to have Rip dethroned by the monstrous Zeus.
04:12 Zeus is played by the late Tiny Tom Lister, who then went on to appear as the character
04:16 in WWE for about a year before being released.
04:19 3.
04:20 Fighting With My Family
04:21 Fighting With My Family is a quasi-biographical movie about former WWE superstar Paige and
04:26 her rise to stardom.
04:28 The movie was produced by WWE Studios, so we knew we wouldn't get too honest of a
04:32 peek behind the curtain.
04:33 Fighting With My Family feels like a light, humorous feel-good origin story of a lifelong
04:38 wrestling fan.
04:39 It hits the notes it intends to hit.
04:41 Florence Pugh is undeniably charming as Paige, and The Rock is always going to be an asset,
04:45 isn't he?
04:46 Like a Cadbury's cream egg, the movie is shiny and goes down easy, but you somewhat
04:49 regret the choice immediately afterwards.
04:51 In the assets column, Fighting With My Family took the actual wrestling pretty seriously.
04:56 Being a WWE product, the movie shone in the areas that WWE does well.
04:59 The ring work was good, even for the non-wrestler actors, the production quality was top-notch,
05:04 and it clearly had a decent budget.
05:06 The movie suffered in the areas where WWE typically suffers.
05:09 To quote Jim Cornette, Vince McMahon sells the sizzle, not the steak.
05:13 It all wraps up in a neat package that would make any studio executive grin like a Cheshire
05:17 cat.
05:18 For many true wrestling fans, though, it lacks any of the real grit of a good wrestling story.
05:23 3.
05:24 Paradise Alley Sylvester Stallone directed this 1978 drama
05:28 about the crossover world of professional wrestling and organised crime.
05:32 While wrestling as a mafia front may be a bit of a stretch, the seedy underbelly of
05:36 the industry is exposed without completely exposing the business.
05:40 In 1978, if Martin Scorsese had been inspired to make a wrestling movie, he would have shared
05:44 a few similarities with Paradise Alley, no doubt.
05:47 Stallone plays one of three orphaned brothers living in 1940s New York City.
05:51 The brothers, always looking for the next way to get rich quick, devise a plan to turn
05:55 one of them into a wrestler.
05:56 The film's tone evokes the grit and struggle of New York in the 1940s, and its climax is
06:01 a 12-minute wrestling match in a leaky, shoddy arena during a thunderstorm.
06:05 Cinematic.
06:06 Paradise Alley's wrestling scenes aren't exactly barnburners, but the script, performances
06:10 and cinematography elevate the mediocre ringwork.
06:13 The movie stands on its dramatic legs more than its action, and it works in this case.
06:17 The same way quality storylines connect fans with the wrestlers, this tale of blue-collar
06:21 desperation and loss gives the audience something on which to hang their hats.
06:26 2.
06:27 Ready to Rumble Have you ever wondered how one can elevate
06:29 the wrestling career of David Arquette and try to kill the wrestling business in under
06:33 two hours?
06:34 I humbly present Ready to Rumble.
06:36 To its credit, Ready to Rumble brought in a ton of legitimate wrestling talent.
06:40 The problem lies in the fact that the movie is akin to a 90-minute Saturday Night Live
06:44 sketch about pro wrestling, but with D-Team writers.
06:47 David Arquette is predictably campy.
06:49 His character Gordy would also fit right in on the set of Reno 911.
06:53 He and his friends are outraged that an unscrupulous wrestling promoter ousted their favourite
06:57 wrestler.
06:58 They set upon a Bill and Ted meets Beavis and Butthead adventure to see their hero restored
07:02 to his former glory.
07:03 Sure, we get to see Goldberg, Spear and Jack hammer some guys, and the babyfaces go over
07:08 in the end, but telling us that Oliver Platt could compete in a ring with Sting or Diamond
07:12 Alice Page is asking a bit much from our collective disbelief.
07:16 2.
07:17 Heels Heels finished its first season and has been
07:19 renewed for a second on premium network STARS.
07:23 This is as close as one can come to the independent wrestling scene without having to personally
07:27 lay up a pair of boots and get superkicked in the face.
07:29 The dramatic element of the show provides crossover appeal to viewers who may not be
07:33 walking in the door as wrestling fans.
07:35 Stephen Amell, a self-professed wrestling fan, leads a stellar ensemble cast.
07:40 Amell plays Jack Spade, a pro wrestler who is the eldest son of local legendary wrestler/promoter
07:45 Tom King Spade.
07:46 Jack takes over the promotion after Tom commits suicide.
07:49 From there, we see Tom spin proverbial plates to keep the Duffy Wrestling League afloat,
07:53 manage a day job, handle his egotistical brother Ace and take care of his family.
07:57 Heels spared no expense in ensuring the in-ring action and backstage politics felt real.
08:02 The looks, emotions and motivations of each character gives depth and investment into
08:06 their stories.
08:07 Most importantly, it's apparent to any smart wrestling fan that the writers know wrestling.
08:12 The communication between wrestlers feels organic and the actual wrestling makes sense.
08:16 All in all, Heels qualifies as a must-see for not just fans, but for wrestlers, some
08:20 of whom could stand to learn a few things about the business.
08:23 1.
08:24 The Wrestler 1974 This 1974 Ed Asner movie bears almost no
08:29 resemblance to the 2008 film of the same name.
08:33 One watch and you'll know why nobody would remake this particular entry.
08:36 The biggest redeeming quality the film has is its many cameos by classic wrestling legends
08:41 like Danny Hodge, Dusty Rhodes and Vern Garnier.
08:43 Garnier, who produced the film, was able to easily cast talent from his promotion.
08:48 But while Vern was able to make sure the filmmakers got the wrestling right, he didn't do much
08:51 for the rest of it.
08:52 The plot revolves around wrestling promoter Frank, an idealist who makes a stand against
08:56 the mobsters, gamblers, scoundrels and near-dewells that threaten to corrupt the industry he loves.
09:01 Once you get past that unlikely scenario, things creep downhill at a glacial pace.
09:06 Being that the movie was made, back in 1974, by a wrestling promoter, kayfabe was still
09:10 very much intact.
09:11 Kudos to Ed Asner for delivering his lines with some gravitas, despite the content.
09:16 In particular, he delivers a great speech to two snobby stuffed suits about the fringe
09:20 benefits of wrestling and the toll it takes on those in the ring.
09:23 Highly acclaimed and nominated for two Academy Awards, Darren Aronofsky directed a masterful
09:31 portrayal of ageing wrestler Randy "The Ram" Robinson.
09:34 Mickey Rourke stars as Robinson and his story is so close to the bone that many thought
09:38 the film was based on the real-life tales of wrestlers like Jake "The Snake" Roberts.
09:42 Like so many actual legends of the business, Robinson struggles to leave the spotlight
09:46 behind.
09:47 Decades past his prime, the veteran lives in a camper, has a strained relationship with
09:50 his estranged daughter and fights to keep his legend alive on the indie circuit.
09:55 It's heartbreaking to watch as a once-great wrestler is delegated to outlaw, mudshow,
09:59 hardcore matches while fighting a losing battle with father time.
10:03 Unlike Young Rock and Fighting With My Family, for example, the wrestler captures the non-glossy
10:07 side of the wrestling world.
10:09 It may be fun to watch the meteoric rise of young talent, but we rarely get to bear witness
10:13 to the final act of a wrestler's career.
10:15 The Kleenex grabber is when Robinson tells his daughter "You're my little girl"
10:19 and now I'm an old, broken-down piece of meat and I'm alone and I deserve to be all
10:23 alone.
10:24 I just need a moment, okay?
10:25 Just one moment, right?
10:26 Oh God.
10:27 And that's our list of any other great and not-so-great portrayals of pro wrestling in
10:31 movies and TV.
10:32 Then let us know all about them in the comments section right down below and do not forget
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10:38 Also if you like this kind of thing then please head on over to WhatCulture.com and find some
10:42 more fantastic articles just like the one this video you're watching right now is based
10:45 on.
10:46 I've been Gareth, portraying a presenter on WhatCulture Wrestling, thank you very much
10:49 for watching this video today and hopefully I'll see your faces very, very soon.