Beyond the Mat (Unrated Director's Cut) (Ringside Special Edition)
by Barry W. Blaustein
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Barry W. Blaustein, Collette Foley, Darren Drozdov, Dewey Foley, Roland AlexanderDirector: Barry W. Blaustein
Brand: Universal
Primary Contributor: Mick Foley
Primary Contributor: Terry Funk
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1; French (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0; French (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled)
Format: Color, Director's Cut, Dolby, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC, Special Edition, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 108 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-03-23
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: Universal Studios
Movie Reviews of Beyond the Mat (Unrated Director's Cut) (Ringside Special Edition)
Movie Review: Good look at the ring science
Summary: 3 Stars
One of the oldest filmic clich?s is that there's nothing sadder than an old boxer, a washed up pug. To that I might state that only an old wrestler is sadder. After all, wrestling is not a true sport- it's a violent theatrical production, and there is not much at stake for the viewers. As for the wrestlers, themselves....that's where this documentary from 2000 comes in. Directed by first time auteur Barry Blaustein it chronicles the re-rise of pro wrestling to prominence in the late 1990s- the era that saw Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, and Cactus Jack become celebrities of a greater nature than any of their forebears, like Killer Kowalski, Dusty Rhodes, Bruno Sammartino, or Hulk Hogan.
The film starts off as an exploration of the men behind the `names', yet it makes a mistake right off the bat, by billing itself as an expos? of the sport, a film that `Vince McMahon doesn't want you to see'. McMahon, to those in the know, is the owner of the largest wrestling league in the nation- the WWE, then the WWF, but there's little in the film to suggest that this is a tell-all. There are some wrestlers with gripes, and we see tales of failed lives, and failed wrestling circuits, like the ECW and WCW (long since bought out by the WWE), and McMahon's league certainly has a history of dealing in drugs (steroids, etc.- as the aforementioned Hogan testified against him in a highly publicized trial in the early 90s), as well as being shamefully anti-union, and not caring of its performers (not long after the film's release one of its wrestlers- Owen Hart, of a well-known wrestling clan- was killed in a spectacular fashion while performing, and the film acknowledges that one of its minor characters, Droz, was paralyzed not long after the film was completed), but all of this is public knowledge, and old news.
What works, though is the portrait of the biz the film portrays, and the three main wrestlers whose lives it follows.... The film has its moments of poignancy and insight, but they are too few and far between. A more pristine and jaded eye would have been necessary, and a more ballsy approach to the subject matter, to gain a following outside the `choir' of pro wrestling. Still, since I go to those pews, every few years, I think it's a must see for any wrestling fan. The game has changed much during the decades, yet, in a sense, it hasn't changed at all. Whether good or bad is the crux, and what this film passes on.
Summary of Beyond the Mat (Unrated Director's Cut) (Ringside Special Edition)
Studio: Uni Dist Corp. (mca) Release Date: 08/24/2004 Starring: Paul Heyman Collette Foley Run time: 108 minutes Rating: Nr Director: Barry BlausteinAt first, this behind-the-scenes documentary about professional wrestling seems as if it will be an unabashed fan's whitewash of the increasingly bizarre and popular world of "sports entertainment," as it is known. But director Barry Blaustein (a Saturday Night Live veteran who has cowritten many of Eddie Murphy's films) goes much deeper than you'd expect in a film that is at once entertaining and disturbing. By focusing on a trio of wrestlers who give him surprising access, Blaustein uncovers human stories that can be wrenching in their stark honesty. That's particularly true of one-time superstar Jake "the Snake" Roberts, whose career has fallen on hard times because of a crack habit; Roberts brings Blaustein along for his first encounter in several years with his grown, estranged daughter. Blaustein also goes into the lives of Terry Funk and Mick "Mankind" Foley in ways that are both revealing and, at times, upsetting. More than just a fan's appreciation, this is that rare documentary that shows you sides of a familiar subject you never knew existed. --Marshall Fine
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