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Beyond the Mat
Universal Pictures
FILM:
MPAA RATING: R for language and violent content
Starring
Terry Funk,
Mick Foley,
Jake Roberts,
Vince McMahon,
Tony Jones,
Michael Modest,
and
Roland Alexander
Documentry focusing on the lives of professional wrestlers. Gives the viewer a behind-the-scenes look at how their sport is not fake.
| GENRE(S): |
Documentary
|
| WRITTEN BY: |
Barry W. Blaustein
|
| DIRECTED BY: |
Barry W. Blaustein
|
| RELEASE DATE: |
DVD: August 22, 2000
Video: August 22, 2000
Theatrical: March 17, 2000
|
| RUNNING TIME: |
102 minutes, Color |
| ORIGIN: |
USA |
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
100
Christian Science Monitor
David Sterritt
Stay far, far away unless you can handle the copious amounts of blood--and agonizing psychological problems-- that its participants face on what seems like a daily basis.
90
Variety
Robert Koehler
A gently and genuinely observed film whose subject is a garish, artificial display of mayhem.
88
Baltimore Sun
Milton Kent
What the film does, brilliantly, is provoke the intelligent fan to wonder if there's a limit to how far the proceedings can go.
85
TNT RoughCut
Chad Damiani
Professional wrestling might not be real, folks -- but, after watching this poignant and simple documentary, you might start questioning where the make-believe begins.
83
Portland Oregonian
Shawn Levy
Frighteningly, grippingly real.
80
Chicago Reader
Lisa Alspector
All the macho men who let down their guard for Blaustein can be proud of the loving deconstruction of violence-as-entertainment that resulted.
80
Washington Post
Desson Thomson
You don't have to love WWF scrapping to appreciate this movie.
78
Austin Chronicle
Russell Smith
A center ring extravaganza of smackdown movie entertainment
75
Miami Herald
Rene Rodriguez
Suggests that professional wrestling is more than a multibillion-dollar industry: It's also a way of life.
75
New York Post
Lou Lumenick
Doesn't shy from the ugly side, though it's far from the no-holds-barred exposé being touted in the ads.
75
Boston Globe
Jay Carr
Wrestling gets in America's face and Blaustein gets in wrestling's face. It's a fascinating tango.
75
Chicago Sun-Times
Roger Ebert
Isn't a slick documentary; some of it feels like Blaustein's home movie about being a wrestling fan. But it has a hypnotic quality.
75
USA Today
Staff [Not Credited]
The match winners and losers may be preordained, but these modern-day gladiators bleed plenty of real blood.
75
San Francisco Chronicle
Peter Stack
A skillful exposition of the pain of pro wrestling, and the high price participants pay in terms of physical and ego injuries.
70
Film.com
Robert Horton
Takes an easy target and turns it into something naggingly weird.
70
TV Guide
Maitland McDonagh
A behind-the-scenes documentary that manages to be unabashedly sympathetic without being a puff piece.
70
Los Angeles Times
Kevin Thomas
Connects the antics of professional wrestlers with their lives out of the ring with such compassion, humor and perception that the result is utterly captivating.
70
The New York Times
A.O. Scott
Wants to blend thrills and pathos, getting at the many sides of what is, as Mr. Blaustein describes it, a carny act.
70
LA Weekly
David Davis
Blaustein's journey seems not to have shaken his convictions; he still embraces pro wrestling, warts and all.
67
Entertainment Weekly
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Often has the rambling feeling of a home movie Blaustein made for his buddies.
63
New York Daily News
Jami Bernard
Doesn't flinch from the serious stuff.
50
Chicago Tribune
John Petrakis
Surprisingly lacking in revelatory moments.
38
San Francisco Examiner
Edvins Beitiks
Trouble is, it's too close-up.
 The average user rating for this movie is 9.3 (out of 10) based on 3 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
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