Sharpshootin' With The Franchise
I remember it like it was yesterday. I was walking out of a movie theatre with a couple of friends when I saw a poster for the coming attractions. The top of the poster read: “The movie Vince McMahon doesn’t want you to see.” What? A wrestling documentary…in theatres…and Vince McMahon DOESN’T want me to see it? They could have wrote “win a million bucks if you lick this poster” and I probably wouldn’t have gravitated towards it as quickly. You see, wrestling is like the circus and wrestling fans, such as myself, would do anything for the opportunity to peek through those curtains and find out what really happens behind the scenes. Would circus fans do the same? Not sure, but you catch my drift. If a documentary promised to spill the beans on the twisted world of professional wrestling I was all for it. And this wasn’t just some documentary. This turned out to be the greatest film ever made about the wrestling business.
Beyond the Mat, directed by Barry Blaustein, is a must-watch for any wrestling fan and, even more importantly, any non-wrestling fan. In many ways, this film is dedicated to all those who are quick to dismiss the sport as fake, stupid, sophomoric or any other negative connotation that has been used to describe the wrestling industry. Throughout the film, Blaustein, who also wrote the screenplay for Coming to America, The Nutty Professor, and Boomerang, spotlights several wrestlers at different points in their respective careers. Some of the notables are Jake “The Snake” Roberts, Terry Funk and Mick Foley. In the mid-1980s, Roberts was one of the best wrestlers in the WWF (now known as WWE). But don’t watch this documentary to relive the Snake’s glory days. Roberts is seen as way past his prime, addicted to drugs and a deadbeat dad. Funk is portrayed as a legend that continues to come out of retirement for one last moment in the sun. However, the most captivating scenes in “Beyond the Mat” are the ones involving Mick Foley.
A funny thing happened to Foley during the filming of the movie. After almost 15 years in the wrestling business, he finally captured the WWF Heavyweight title – the industry’s holy grail. Finally recognized as one of the best, Foley decides to put his body through an unfathomable amount of pain to help make his title run as memorable as possible. Sadly, his actions go too far and he is left questioning whether it was all worth it.
Also interviewed are a bunch of up-and-coming wrestlers whom, as the years go by, it’s interesting to revisit how they all started. But what makes this documentary so fascinating is that a man who simply loves wrestling directed it. He isn’t looking to expose the business or degrade it. He is simply trying to learn why these individuals are so misunderstood within our society and why they’ve decided to earn their livelihood in this virtually taboo form of entertainment. Do some of the wrestlers play up to the slimy wrasslin’ stereotype? Absolutely. But consider this - my father, by far the strongest wrestling critic I have ever met, was actually moved after watching this film about an industry he despises with a passion. It was because Beyond the Mat is about much more than just wrestling. And if that doesn’t entice you enough, remember: Even Vince McMahon himself DOESN’T want you to see it.
Below is the opening scene of the film. I might as well be narrating it because I feel the exact same way.
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Franchise dedicated his "Sharpshootin" column this week to Beyond the Mat as part of our ongoing partnership with The Tribeca/ESPN Sports Film Festival which runs from April 25 to May 26 right here in NYC.
Beyond the Mat, directed by Barry Blaustein, is a must-watch for any wrestling fan and, even more importantly, any non-wrestling fan. In many ways, this film is dedicated to all those who are quick to dismiss the sport as fake, stupid, sophomoric or any other negative connotation that has been used to describe the wrestling industry. Throughout the film, Blaustein, who also wrote the screenplay for Coming to America, The Nutty Professor, and Boomerang, spotlights several wrestlers at different points in their respective careers. Some of the notables are Jake “The Snake” Roberts, Terry Funk and Mick Foley. In the mid-1980s, Roberts was one of the best wrestlers in the WWF (now known as WWE). But don’t watch this documentary to relive the Snake’s glory days. Roberts is seen as way past his prime, addicted to drugs and a deadbeat dad. Funk is portrayed as a legend that continues to come out of retirement for one last moment in the sun. However, the most captivating scenes in “Beyond the Mat” are the ones involving Mick Foley.
A funny thing happened to Foley during the filming of the movie. After almost 15 years in the wrestling business, he finally captured the WWF Heavyweight title – the industry’s holy grail. Finally recognized as one of the best, Foley decides to put his body through an unfathomable amount of pain to help make his title run as memorable as possible. Sadly, his actions go too far and he is left questioning whether it was all worth it.
Also interviewed are a bunch of up-and-coming wrestlers whom, as the years go by, it’s interesting to revisit how they all started. But what makes this documentary so fascinating is that a man who simply loves wrestling directed it. He isn’t looking to expose the business or degrade it. He is simply trying to learn why these individuals are so misunderstood within our society and why they’ve decided to earn their livelihood in this virtually taboo form of entertainment. Do some of the wrestlers play up to the slimy wrasslin’ stereotype? Absolutely. But consider this - my father, by far the strongest wrestling critic I have ever met, was actually moved after watching this film about an industry he despises with a passion. It was because Beyond the Mat is about much more than just wrestling. And if that doesn’t entice you enough, remember: Even Vince McMahon himself DOESN’T want you to see it.
Below is the opening scene of the film. I might as well be narrating it because I feel the exact same way.
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Franchise dedicated his "Sharpshootin" column this week to Beyond the Mat as part of our ongoing partnership with The Tribeca/ESPN Sports Film Festival which runs from April 25 to May 26 right here in NYC.
2 Comments:
snake lives on.
http://www.wwe.com/superstars/wherearetheynow/jakethesnake
The craziest factoid I learned from watching Beyond the Mat was how the Snake was conceived.
Basically, there was this father, Grizzly Smith, who raped his young daughter. Nine months later...out comes little Jake Roberts.
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