Reception
The Wrestler has received universal critical acclaim. Rotten Tomatoes reported that 98% of critics gave the film positive write-ups based upon a sample of 215, and gave it a golden tomato for best drama of 2008. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film has received an average score of 81, based on 36 reviews, signifying "universal acclaim". Alonso Duralde, of MSNBC, said, "Rourke's work transcends mere stunt-casting; his performance is a howl of pain that seems to come from a very real place."
Todd McCarthy, of Variety, said, "Rourke creates a galvanizing, humorous, deeply moving portrait that instantly takes its place among the great, iconic screen performances." Ben Mankiewicz, from At the Movies, said, "To put it simply, this is the best film I've seen this year." Le Monde praised the film for melding European film style with an American plot, and stated that “Mickey Rourke’s performance in ‘The Wrestler’ is a continuous celebration of the burdens and splendors of the profession of performance.” (one other French movie critic, Philippe Azoury, praised its portrayal of "the American heartland" as what he viewed as a bleak wasteland).) Although The Wrestler was not technically in Roger Ebert's "Best Films" list, he includes a note at the bottom of his review: "'The Wrestler' is one of the year's best films. It wasn't on my 'best films' list for complicated and boring reasons."
Read more about this topic: The Wrestler (2008 Film)
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