Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #33829 in DVD
• Released on: 2000-09-18
• Rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 105 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
At 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 co-written 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, Amazon.com

Special Features
English
Region 2

Synopsis
Filmmaker Barry W. Blaustein takes a look at the professional wrestling game at every level, from the hopeful, perhaps deluded beginners who spend their money on wrestling schools, to the lower levels of the profession, to the pinnacle of wrestling success: national fame in the WWF. Particularly fascinating are Blaustein's examinations of Jake "The Snake" Roberts and Mick "Mankind" Foley. Roberts was once a superstar in the WWF, but evidently drugs and alcohol destroyed his career, and left him a broken and bitter man, wrestling on the outer reaches of the pro circuit. In a poignant scene, Blaustein captures a painful reunion between Roberts and his adult daughter. Foley, on the other hand, is a tremendous success in the WWF and a devoted husband and father. But the violence of his profession still threatens to tear his family apart. Blaustein makes no bones about his perspective in making his film. He's a wrestling fan. That said, the film offers an honest view of the outrageous and controversial world of professional wrestling. Though the outcomes of matches are usually predetermined making it a different kind of sport, pro wrestling is certainly a demanding and brutal way of life.

Customer Reviews

The Movie The McMahons Tried To Ban.
I know what you're wondering, why is that one of the titles? Well let me explain a bit about what happens during the movie.

**Warning May Contain Spoilers**

This movie was made by acclaimed director Barry Blaustein who is a huge wrestling fan and it takes you behind the scenes of the wrestling world and some of it's biggest names. Mainly New Jack from ECW and Mick Foley from WWE. This basically reveals every secret the WWE tries to keep you from knowing, from the scripted shows to the rivals chilling and laughing with each other backstage, plus it makes Vince look kind of foolish when he is interviewing Darron Drozdov later to be known as The Droz and giving him the name Puke and making him throw up in a rubbish bin.
This shows a very honest and sometimes disturbing look at the real world of wrestling including an honest and somewhat upsetting look at the troubled life of Jake "The Snake" Roberts.
Buy this movie if you love wrestling or even if you are a critic who likes to go round saying wrestling is fake. This may change your mind.

The wrestling fans film
How many times have you had to tell your friends, 'it is scripted but its not as fake as you think'? This film is proof of that and looks beyond the glamour and the coreography to the consequences of getting your body thrown around a ring and being away from your family for about fifty weeks of the year. It is not all fun and games and a last the wrestling fan has a documentry evidence to prove this to all those who sneer at pro-wrestling.

A very real look at how "fake" wrestling is.
I watched this film and was totally amazed, I have read Mick Foley's book and this documentary runs parallel to it. The bits about Jake Roberts are just astounding, how that man is still in the business amazes me, I recommend this video, even the Rock looks like a genuinly nice guy. It's just a pity that Al Snow isn't in it, he's mentioned in the credits though.