Tag: The Wrestler

1/16 Oscarweb Round-up

• A brilliant roundtable: wrestlers discussing “The Wrestler.” It’s just nice that Luger has his faculties about him now. [Fox Searchlight]

• While we’re on the subject, the top 10 wrestlers in movies. I’m big on #10 and #3. Not so much on #1. [The Times]

• Making the SAG award statuette. [The Envelope]

• Kate Dailey reports from a SoHo Q&A with “Gran Torino” director and star Clint Eastwood. [Vulture]

• A nice Leonardo DiCaprio appreciation. [The Guardian]

• Feel-good films for a global recession. [The Independent]

• Patrick Goldstein picks up on TV producer Chuck Lorre’s recent post-“Big Bang Theory” vanity card, bemoaning the negativity of this year’s Oscar contenders. [The Big Picture]

January 16, 2009
The top 10 shots of 2008: part one

I’m hoping to make this an annual tradition here at In Contention. It’s no secret we have a lot of respect for below-the-line talent around these parts, but it’s nice to have a visual way of showing that appreciation. I sat down to write this piece for the first time last year, taken by the caliber of cinematography we had to bask in throughout the year and, indeed, the awards season. The unusually high number of lensing achievements in 2007 left a slew of images to choose from and it was difficult whittling it down to 10.

This year the challenge was of a different sort. The field was curiously thin. It wasn’t that the talent wasn’t on display. God knows, a number of the greats were lining up behind the camera this year. But the images weren’t as instantly iconic or as viscerally gripping as they were in 2007, which might have left me a bit disappointed on one hand. Then again, it just made searching for my favorites all the more involved and interesting, and I’m happy to offer my findings to you in this space, even if it meant doubling up.

Yes, in one instance (an undeniable one, really), a certain film found two shots popping up on the list, and nearly three. Another film also found itself close to a second mention, but I tried to keep a balance of honesty and fairness in place as much as possible. If a film has two of the year’s best shots, it has two of the year’s best shots, right?

This year, things are slightly different. Last time around, I got a few arbitrary quotes from lensers throughout the season and plugged them into the piece where they fit best. This year, I sought out the various directors of photography to get their opinions on the specific shots in question. Their insight, as always, makes for a better story and, indeed, more context for the reader. I hope you enjoy reading their thoughts as much as I did collecting them.

So, I look forward to doing this each and every year I’m cranking out copy for your reading pleasure (or displeasure). In my view, it is one of the best ways I can commemorate the technicians that so often find themselves overlooked this time of year.

So let’s get on with the list…

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January 14, 2009
Bagger: Rourke passes the PR test

Given the newly compressed awards calendar of recent years, with a gap this year of only one day between the Golden Globe awards and the deadline for Oscar nomination ballots, the former has little impact on the latter anymore. However, that’s not to say that what happens on Globe night has no effect on the winners’ Oscar campaigns.

For actors in particular, the Globes are the most visible Oscar-night audition a contender can ask for. A memorable Globe moment can play into Phase II of Academy voting: Jamie Foxx’s canny Golden Globe acceptance speech in 2005 pretty much sealed his Oscar win there and then, while Eddie Murphy’s indifferent one two years later hardly galvanized Academy members into voting for him.

So, trivial as it may sound, it’s worth taking into account the press and public reaction to Sunday night’s victors. Kate Winslet’s manic gushing may be earning her no end of criticism in the British press, but I suspect her evident gratitude at winning could go over well with Academy members. Meanwhile, Sally Hawkins’ emotion-drenched near-breakdown on stage can only raise her profile if she garners an Oscar nod.

However, the Carpetbagger seems to feel (and I’m inclined to agree) that the real PR champ on Sunday was surprise Best Actor winner Mickey Rourke — whose eccentric acceptance speech, complete with tributes to canines past and present, was as memorable as it was oddly touching. (I don’t mind admitting I teared up, but then I did lose a dog myself last year. Cut me some slack.) While the Bagger confesses he was hoping for some trademark Rourke controversy, he was thoroughly won over by the star’s openness — and crucially, thinks his peers were too:

But there is another part of the Bagger that watched hopefully, wishing that Mr. Rourke would keep it between the lines. His candidacy for best actor took a huge step the other night and the audience of his peers at the Beverly Hilton nearly jumped in his lap. “Everyone in that room has had their ups and downs,” said Aaron Eckhart, who was at a party held last night for Mr. Rourke hosted by LA Confidential. “We all felt good about what happened on that stage.”

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January 13, 2009
CDG nominees

I’ve been out and about, so apologies for getting to the Costume Designers Guild nominees late:

Contemporary Film
“Iron Man” (Laura Jean Shannon and Rebecca Bentjen)
“Mamma Mia!” (Ann Roth)
“Sex and the City” (Patricia Field)
“Slumdog Millionaire” (Suttirat Larlarb)
“The Wrestler” (Amy Westcott)

Period Film
“Changeling” (Deborah Hopper)
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Jacqueline West)
“The Duchess” (Michael O’Connor)
“Milk” (Danny Glicker)
“Revolutionary Road” (Albert Wolsky)

Fantasy Film
“The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” (Isis Mussenden)
“The Dark Knight” (Lindy Hemming)
“The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor” (Sanja Milkovic Hays)

I have to say, while I could understand the classification for, say, the Tim Burton films, I’m increasingly agitated by the “fantasy” classification of Christopher Nolan’s Batman franchise. And “The Dark Knight” is 10 times more “contemporary” than “Iron Man,” but whatever. If the false classification means the films find some guild love in the fields of art direction and costume design, so be it, I guess.

More frankly surprising guild support for “The Wrestler,” while “Slumdog” and “Button” remain the guild champs. I’m happy “Prince Caspian” finally popped up somewhere.

I see no real reason to change my Oscar predicitons here based on these results, but we’ll keep an eye on it as always.

January 13, 2009
Golden Globes: Feeling the love

As I curled on the couch in the wee small hours of the morning, watching last night’s Golden Globes telecast with only a hot toddy and a handful of chatty IC commenters for company, it occurred to me that I was hearing an awful lot of one word as the evening unfolded. And that word was ‘love.’

Of course, it’s a ubiquitous word in any awards show, weepily applied as it is to innumerable family members, lovers and colleagues as winners rattle names off thank-you lists longer than most films’ scripts. But this struck me as slightly different: the love here was being directed towards film and art itself.

Sally Hawkins, the night’s most endearing (and overwhelmed) winner, set the tone, describing her film, “Happy-Go-Lucky,” as being about love both on and off the screen. Surprise (to some) winner Colin Farrell followed her lead, celebrating cinematic adventurousness with the elegant soundbite: “Curiosity is love.”

Meanwhile, Danny Boyle picked up above all on the affection his awards-sweeping film has garnered within the industry, while Kate Winslet paid tribute to a long-standing love cultivated with her co-star, refracted very differently in two films, eleven years apart.

It struck me as an appropriate motif for an awards ceremony that seemed less calculated and more sincere than usual. Perhaps a year away the Globes has made me –- or them –- soft, but for an institution that takes sustained criticism for being overly susceptible to campaigning muscle and star power, it seemed to me that, in almost every category, the HFPA members had voted with their collective hearts, singling out the performers and films that they themselves loved.

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January 12, 2009
OFF THE CARPET: From the horse’s mouth

The last two weeks have been a leaf blower to the debris an awards season can accumulate. Individuals with some real say in the ultimate Oscar picture have finally gone on the record, painting a rather clear picture of the industry’s favorite films of 2008.

But before diving into the realities of the various guild announcements, it is probably worth touching upon the gleeful diversions of the Critics’ Choice Awards and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s Golden Globe Awards.

These are the two culminating critics soirees, capping off the annual critical kudos sprint through December and early January. Both proudly declare themselves Oscar harbingers but only one seems to find itself decided from a critical mindset (even if that mindset is still warped by pegging a zeitgeist). The other is, as always, a drunken time amongst industry friends that goes its own way.

But dare I say it, this year the HFPA may have actually raised the bar for the Academy. After years of embarrassing nominations announcements and sometimes bewildering winner choices, the group awarded a slate of contenders last night that stuck out as noble and, shockingly, novel.

Can the Academy’s membership reach out to Mickey Rourke and meet him half way like he has clearly done this season to an industry that has shunned him for so many years? Can they find a way to spread the kudos love while an inevitable “Slumdog” sweep pushes through the evening of February 22?

Moreover, can AMPAS have the balls to follow in the HFPA’s footsteps with a double win for Kate Winslet, arguably deserving this year and a move that would be inarguable as a hell of an apology for years of Oscar losses? The actress joined Sigourney Weaver last night as one of only two actresses to win a pair of Golden Globe awards for film performances in one evening. Your move, Oscar.

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January 12, 2009
“Tell me can you ask for anything more?”

January 12, 2009
INTERVIEW: Marisa Tomei

I’m coming around to Marisa Tomei rather late in the publicity game this year. I didn’t make it to Venice or Toronto and we just haven’t crossed paths here in L.A. during this exhausting — as always — Oscar season. But the first thing I have to ask is if she feels the pressure yet.

A studio can run an artist ragged this time of year, especially when they’re on the cusp of an Oscar nomination. And that’s a position Tomei undoubtedly finds herself in as we move into the new year and her performance in Darren Aronofsky’s “The Wrestler” continues to light up the circuit.

“I’m getting there,” she says of the approaching fatigue factor. But you wouldn’t know it from the energy that still pops. Those bright brown eyes are as beautiful as you’d expect, of course, and that laugh is infectious. She’s fresh off a much-needed holiday vacation — back east for Christmas and home in L.A. for new year’s, quiet and with depressurizing on the mind.

When she comes over to the table she takes a moment to speak to a fellow celebrity sitting adjacent to us before popping open the menu and declaring, “I’m gonna eat.” What was going to be maybe a half-hour discussion over coffee turns into almost an hour of talk over lunch, topics ranging from her early passion for acting to her attempt at going back to college at one point in her career to, of course, the process of creating Cassidy, the “stripper with the heart of gold” at the center of “The Wrestler.”

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January 9, 2009
Art Directors Guild Nominees

Period Films
“Changeling”
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“Doubt”
“Frost/Nixon”
“Milk”

Fantasy Films
“The Dark Knight”
“Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”
“Iron Man”
“The Spiderwick Chronicles”
“WALL-E”

Contemporary Films
“Burn After Reading”
“Gran Torino”
“Quantum of Solace”
“Slumdog Millionaire”
“The Wrestler”

Alright, so more surprising guild love for “The Wrestler.” Very interesting. But I’m rather shocked at the “Hellboy II” Snub in fantasy. On the whole, though, does this clear anything up in this category? I’ve been confused all year long.

I’d say “Button,” “Skull” and “Slumdog” for the wins.

January 9, 2009
A night at the Critics’ Choice Awards

$Sean Penn at the 14th Annual Critics\' Choice Awards$ It’s an event that keeps on getting better and better, a little awards show that’s escalated into one of the hallmarks of the film awards season, whether the “we’re one of the best Oscar predictors” stuff is annoying or not (which it is).

The night had a number of surprises, but in a sense, one of those surprises became a foregone conclusion half-way through the show. The whole room could tell — “Slumdog Millionaire” was going to walk away with the first clean BFCA sweep since “A Beautiful Mind” in 2001. Nothing for “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.” Nothing for “Frost/Nixon.” Nothing but the usual for the slowly-becoming-silver-medal-bound “The Dark Knight.”

Two big wins for “Milk” were nice. Sean Penn’s victory as Best Actor might have been inevitable, even though Mickey Rourke’s portrayal was probably the year’s most critically acclaimed of the year. I couldn’t help keeping an eye trained on Mickey two tables over, one of the wandering cameras crammed in his face as Penn delivered his acceptance. Clearly the “Wrestler” gang was a bit disheartened, nabbing only one win — for Bruce Springsteen’s title track. But Fox Searchlight was beaming nonetheless with it’s five “Slumdog” trophies.

I did as much mingling as the two minute commercial intervals would allow, but I did manage to finally meet the lovely Kate Beckinsale, nominated tonight for her criminally underseen performance in “Nothing But the Truth.” She’s a real sweetheart, happy for the few pockets of support she’s been able to find for the film, which was essentially avalanched by the Yari bankruptcy last month. There’s still Santa Barbara in a couple of weeks.

I have to say, being in the middle of Heath Ledger’s standing ovation was somewhat emotional. The win wasn’t surprising in hindsight, but as Laura Dern was opening the envelope, I couldn’t help but think the idea of major awards was suddenly a pipe dream for this performance. But it all went away quickly and Christopher Nolan gave a touching, spot-on acceptance speech on behalf of the actor.

(More, plus the full list of winners, after the jump.)

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January 8, 2009
1/8 Oscarweb Round-up

• Patrick Goldstein waxes on about why he thinks “WALL-E,” “The Reader” and “The Wrestler” will be Oscar losers (for Best Pic). [The Big Picture]

• Peter Bart observes Oscar campaign “combat fatigue” at the Palm Springs International Film Festival. [Peter Bart]

• Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard talk to KCRW’s Jason Bentley. [KCRW]

• David Carr does some pre-DGA speculating. [The Carpetbagger]

• Tom O’Neil takes a stab at predicting tonight’s Critics’ Choice Awards. [Gold Derby]

• While a few online mag staffers take a stab at the Globes. [Premiere]

• In praise of Clint Eastwood’s…face. [Slate]

• Xan Brooks wonders what the point of the People’s Choice Awards is. [The Guardian]

• Rebecca Hall gets some much-deserved ink across the pond for popping up on the BAFTA Best Newcomer shortlist. [Daily Telegraph]

• Howard Feinstein talks to “Man on Wire” director James Marsh. [indieWIRE]

• John Horn on the perils of high-brow cinema in the marketplace. [Los Angeles Times]

• Esther Walker says “Revolutionary Road” will change the obscurity of Richard Yates. [The Independent]

• Kevin Maher talks to Liev Schreiber about the action hero redefining of his career as of late. [The Times]

January 8, 2009
WGA nominees

Original Screenplay
“Burn After Reading” (Ethan Coen, Joel Coen)
“Milk” (Dustin Lance Black)
“Vicky Cristina Barcelona” (Woody Allen)
“The Visitor” (Thomas McCarthy)
“The Wrestler” (Robert Siegel)

Adapted Screenplay
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Eric Roth; screen story by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord; based on the short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald)
“The Dark Knight” (Christopher Nolan, Jonathan Nolan; screen story by Christopher Nolan, David S. Goyer; based on characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics; Batman created by Bob Kane)
“Doubt” (John Patrick Shanley; based on his stage play)
“Frost/Nixon” (Peter Morgan; based on his stage play)
“Slumdog Millionaire” (Simon Beaufoy; based on the novel “Q and A” by Vikas Swarup)

Documentary
“Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story” (Stefan Forbes, Noland Walker)
“Chicago 10” (Brett Morgan)
“Fuel” (Johnny O’Hara)
“Gonzo: The Life and Work of Hunter S. Thompson” (Alex Gibney; from the words of Hunter S. Thompson)
“Waltz With Bashir” (Ari Folman)

So, the lesson? “The Dark Knight” is in this thing for real now. As I said last night, this was going to be the real test. “I wanted to see what you’d do. And you didn’t disappoint.” The rest of the adapted screenplay nominees will likely translate to Oscar 5/5, but I somehow doubt the Coen brothers will turn their guild mention into an Oscar berth. Remember, the WGA likes comedies, so “Burn After Reading” was always going to have a leg up here.

More love for “The Wrestler,” and though it’s not entirely unexpected, I must say it was a pleasant surprise. And we all figured Thomas McCarthy would find love with the same group that nomianted him for 2003’s “The Station Agent.” He may or may not translate that into an Oscar nomination, but it’s certainly a good possibility.

And remember, animated films are not eligible, so “WALL-E” still has a shot at sliding in. Maybe. It is, indeed, the most critically acclaimed film of the year, but it’s a slightly different case than “Toy Story,” “Finding Nemo” and “Ratatouille,” I think.

Biggest snub: “Rachel Getting Married” (very odd, but frankly, a welcome exclusion)
Needed this one bad: “In Bruges” (the studio is trying hard); “The Reader” (that Scripter nod might have provided elevated hopes)

Anyway, I think Christopher Nolan’s DGA nomination is pretty much in the bag tomorrow. I’d be tempted to call the Best Picture five a done deal after that, but we must always remember “Almost Famous and “Being John Malkovich,” two films that landed nominations from the PGA, DGA, WGA and a grabbed a SAG ensemble mention, yet failed to make into Oscar’s Best Picture five. And “The Dark Knight” didn’t even get the SAG Ensemble nod, so “Doubt” is still lurking. It ain’t over yet.

January 7, 2009
Guessing the DGA

So, with SAG, PGA and ASC out of the way, and with WGA still to come in a matter of hours, I guess it’s worth mentioning that the big daddy guild is announcing tomorrow: the Directors Guild of America (DGA). Now’s as good a time as any to take a stab at guessing the nominees…

The DGA has been one hell of an Oscar Best Picture barometer for the last decade or so. Last year was the first real hiccup as the guild only nailed three of the eventual five nominees with their director choices. 2006 saw one misfire (but we all still figured “Dreamgirls” was in around this time two years ago). Then it was four years in a row five-for-five until we have another hiccup, Ridley Scott making it in for “Black Hawk Down” and Christopher Nolan (in the mix again this year) for “Memento.”

After that, the general trend was four-for-five with some 100 percents thrown in here and there, but you get the picture. This is, more often than not, quite the prognosticative (that’s so not a word) guild. With the PGA clearly establishing a consensus of sorts (not that those five films haven’t been the obvious contenders for weeks upon weeks), I see no real reason to get creative right now, so I’m going with the following:

David Fincher, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
Christopher Nolan, “The Dark Knight”
Ron Howard, “Frost/Nixon”
Gus Van Sant, “Milk”
Danny Boyle, “Slumdog Millionaire”

There are only two filmmakers that I think have a shot of cracking this quintet: Woody Allen for “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” and, perhaps more so, Darren Aronofsky for “The Wrestler.” John Patrick Shanley and “Doubt” showing up would truly shock me and Andrew Stanton is not eligible for “WALL-E,” so the field is rather thin.

What are you thinking?

January 7, 2009
Mickey Rourke featurette at Awards Daily

“I don’t know if I could ever do it again,” Mickey Rourke says in this just-up exclusive featurette at Awards Daily. “Just something magical happened.” I love that. And I must say, Fox Searchlight is really working this thing hard this year. The studio’s passion is always evident, but this season, with considerably less funds and certainly not-so-typical awards bait to work, I have to say the hard work is REALLY showing. I just spent an hour or so with Marisa Tomei yesterday and she couldn’t agree more, of course. She’s on the bubble right now, but as she told me, “it’s nice to be in the mix.” I’ll have that interview up in due time, but here’s AD’s Rourke piece:

And in case you missed it, here’s our Marisa Tomei featurette from last month.

January 7, 2009
Guessing the WGA: the originals

I almost let this one slip by without taking a stab at it. It’s all happening!

Anyway, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) will be announcing its list of screen nominees tomorrow. I figured I’d take an in-depth look at both categories, starting with the original scripts, which provide a much broader field than the adaptations.

Understand that foreign films and animated films are not eligible with the WGA, so you won’t be seeing nominations for “I’ve Loved You So Long” or “WALL-E.” The former probably didn’t have much of a shot, but with Andrew Stanton and company out of the picture, it helps to narrow things a bit…but not by much.

Looking deeper at the equation, Mike Leigh has only been nominated by the guild once, way back in 1996 for “Secrets & Lies.” My hunch is the guild doesn’t much respect his penchant for improvisation as opposed to proper screenwriting, even if the Academy’s writing branch has allowed for it in recent years.

Woody Allen’s whopping 18 nominations would make him a seeming lock but then again, his last guild nod was back in 1995 for “Mighty Aphrodite.” The Academy has nominated him for “Deconstructing Harry” and “Match Point” since that time, but “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” is probably his most well-liked film in over a decade, so it’s probably secure.

Next, it’s worth noting that the WGA likes its comedies. “The 40 Year Old Virgin,” “Garden State,” “The Station Agent,” “Bend It Like Beckham” and “Best in Show” represent a handful of original screenplays that have been nominated here even if they managed to be left out of the Academy’s tally. So something tells me a shocker like “Pineapple Express” or “Tropic Thunder” showing up shouldn’t be much of a shock at all, but I’m more tempted to go with Martin McDonagh’s brutally dark “In Bruges” instead.

I see no real reason to bet against Jenny Lumet’s “Rachel Getting Married” (though I could be on autopilot with that assumption) or Thomas McCarthy’s “The Visitor” (as mentioned, recognized here in 2003 for “The Station Agent”). So that leaves one more spot to fill.

There is always one Best Picture nominee left out of this guild’s slate of nominees even if it manages to find love with the Academy’s writing branch. Examples have included “Atonement,” “Letters from Iwo Jima,” “Munich” and “Finding Neverland.” My guess is it’s a toss-up between “Frost/Nixon” in the adaptations and “Milk” here in the originals for that unfortunate designation this year. But I’m going to go ahead with the assumption that Dustin Lance Black is on sturdy ground with his work on the Harvey Milk biopic.

One quick note before I get to my predictions, however: I have no idea how any industry guild or organization will respond to Charlie Kaufman’s “Synecdoche, New York.” If the WGA sees the brilliance, great, grand…but I’m not counting on it.

I’m going with this set:

“In Bruges” (Martin McDonagh)
“Milk” (Dustin Lance Black)
“Rachel Getting Married” (Jenny Lumet)
“Vicky Cristina Barcelona” (Woody Allen)
“The Visitor” (Thomas McCarthy)

Other possibilities:
“Burn After Reading” (Ethan Coen, Joel Coen)
“Pineapple Express” (Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg)
“Tropic Thunder” (Etan Cohen, Ben Stiller, Justin Theroux)
“The Wrestler” (Robert D. Siegel)

What about you?

January 6, 2009
‘Dark Knight’ tops our list of the year’s best

In lieu of a proper Tuesday list, I thought I’d do something a little different this year, since we have a slew of contributors and In Contention is no longer the brain space of just one person. I polled all our writers for their individual top 10 lists, which you can find detailed after the jump. But with the lists in hand, I pulled out the trusty abacus and went about the painstakingly in-depth analysis of each to surmise a collective top 10. The results were interesting.

No film appeared on all five lists, which is already an accomplishment, I’d say. Four films appeared on four lists and four on three. The remaining two films on the collective appeared on two lists. No film popping up on just one list was taken into account, so you don’t get to march with torches over a “Bolt” inclusion.

“The Dark Knight” became the obvious victor early on, but Charlie Kaufman’s “Synecdoche, New York” came a lot closer than you might think. I used a simple point system per ranking, but in all scenarios, the number of lists featuring a film was given precedence over points. This made for a good tie-breaker here and there and, in some cases, caused for this film or that to leap-frog another.

Consider this my ultimate salute to our contributors who, I doubt I’m alone here, did a bang-up job in 2008. Here’s to an equally splendid 2009.

In Contention’s top 10 films of 2008:

1. “The Dark Knight”
2. “Synecdoche, New York”
3. “Slumdog Millionaire”
4. “WALL-E”
5. “Milk”
6. “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
7. “The Wrestler”
8. “Let the Right One In”
9. “Rachel Getting Married”
10. “In Bruges”

Honorable mention: “Gomorrah,” “Hunger,” “Pineapple Express”

(Individual lists after the jump.)

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January 6, 2009
EXCLUSIVE: Best Makeup contenders narrow to seven

The first bake-off of the season is here, narrowing the Oscar contenders for Best Makeup down to seven. The finalists are:

“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight”
“Hellboy II: The Golden Army”
“The Reader”
“Synecdoche, New York”
“Tropic Thunder”
“The Wrestler”

No major surprises here. My predicted three are still in the mix. In fact, I missed the top seven in my chart by just one, “The Reader” in favor of “Frost/Nixon.” But the show of support for “The Wrestler” is certainly telling, and perhaps a worthy inclusion, given the attention to brutal battle detail in the pro wrestling flick.

If there are any surprise omissions, it might be the aforementioned “Frost/Nixon,” or perhaps “W.” Oh, and “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian.” I believe the first installment made it this far. No go on the considerably less popular sequel. But on the whole, this process seems to have been organic enough, leaving us with a solid septet. I could see any combination of three making it in.

January 5, 2009
Broadway helmer Diane Paulus on ‘The Wrestler’

I stumbled across this interesting bit of praise for “The Wrestler” amid Variety’s typically dense Award Central section. The high marks come from Broadway director Diane Paulus, who is set to open a revival of “Hair” on March 5. I love her equation of professional wrestling to “one of the most powerful expressions of theater of our time.”

Too often I think those who would rather bash wrestling for not being a “sport” per se miss the point that it is a brand of entertainment, a level of performance and worth plenty more than the uneducated, back-handed swipe it so often receives. Thankfully, Darren Aronofsky and Robert D. Siegel understood that. It’s refreshing to see someone like Paulus does as well:

I have been fascinated by the world of professional wrestling for years. I believe that when theater in the 20th century is studied from the vantage point of 500 years from now, professional wrestling — and in particular, the heyday of 1980s wrestling — will emerge as one of the most powerful expressions of theater of our time. So, to watch Darren Aronofsky’s “The Wrestler” is to experience a long overdue homage to the power of professional wrestling. The film gets at the guts of what drives the allure of the ring for Randy “the Ram” Robinson — and through the charisma of Randy “the Ram” what draws in the bloodlust-driven spectators.

January 5, 2009