The genius director The Wrestler takes on the challenge of making a semi-documentary film that captures the main character of “The Wrestler”, Randy-Mickey Rourke, as he is.

Synopsis of "The Wrestler"

Randy, aka The Ram, a former popular professional wrestler, has lost his family, money, and fame after his glory days. He now makes ends meet by performing at festivals and working a part-time job at a supermarket. One day, he suffers a heart attack and is advised by his doctor to retire. He realizes that he has nowhere to go and no one to rely on. Randy gets a new job, repairs his relationship with his estranged daughter, and seeks solace in a familiar stripper. However, when he stumbles over all of this, he realizes that he is a man who can only live as a professional wrestler, The Ram, even if it means putting his life at risk.

Index

• Darren Aronofsky, the sadistic genius
• A “non-condemning perspective” following the Dardenne brothers
• If Mickey Rourke didn't exist...

Darren Aronofsky, the sadistic genius

In his debut feature film " Pi " (1998) and his second film " Requiem for a Hidden Figures " (2000), director Darren Aronofsky portrayed people going mad in a paranoid way. Even back then, many film fans had already started to think, "This director is not normal..."

In " The Fountain " (2006), he caused controversy with its religious theme, in " Black Swan " (2010), he had Natalie Portman play an innocent ballerina who becomes mentally confused (she won the Academy Award for Best Actress!), and in " Noah " (2014), he invested a lot of money to visualize the world of the Bible. His subsequent film " Mother! " (2017) received such a poor response from American audiences that it was surprisingly postponed for release in Japan.

"Mother!" Trailer

He continues to be praised and booed, and charges forward while mixing sadistic and religious concepts. The movements of this modern "genius" are truly worth keeping an eye on.

Although Aronofsky seems to be the polar opposite of stability-oriented, when it comes to staffing, he is actually cautious. A symbol of this is cinematographer Matthew Libatique. He has been Aronofsky's unwavering partner in almost all of his films, from his debut to "Mother!" However, there is one exception: "The Wrestler" (2008).

A “non-condemning perspective” following the Dardenne brothers