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Movies I Barely Remember And That I Really Want To See Again #1
posted Monday, 9 January 2006
I just recently submitted an article for the latest issue of Hitch in which I talk about my top ten favourite TV shows I barely remember and would probably hate if I saw them again today. One of the effects of having written this piece is that it has got me thinking about all those movies I saw when I was kid, but haven't been able to see again, since their (probably well-deserved) obscurity has ensured that they are no longer available on video and are unlikely to ever show up again on even the most desperate of cable channels. To help me deal with this problem, I've decided to start another of my (invariably short-lived) regular features. This one is, as the header above makes explicit, is entitled "Movies I Barely Remember and That I Really Want to See Again" and for the inaugural entry I've decided to talk about what has to be the greatest TV movie ever made about the sport of professional wrestling. Yes, I'm talking about the pinacle of Alex Karras' post NFL career (and yes, I am including his groundbreaking work with Emmanuel Lewis on Webster in this statement), Mad Bull.
Filmed in 1977, almost two decades before the major wrestling organizations finally acknowledged that the outcomes in their "sport" were as predetermined as the medal standings in Olympic figure skating, Mad Bull presents a gritty, grimey look at the underbelly of the professional grappling arts. In the film, Karras prepared for his iconic role as the Hooded Fang by portraying Iago "Mad Bull" Karkus, a "heel" wrestler who, when he's not fighting for his life in the ring, is forced to deal with crazed wrestling fans and his own inadequacies as a father. But before he can change his life outside of wrestling, he has to meet the greatest challange of his life--a championship match with the greatest "babyface" of all time, Jake "The White Knight" Braden.
Mad Bull was made in the era where "kayfabe" was strictly enforced in the wrestling world, which probably explains why I remember the film as essentially being a poorman's Rocky (much like Mr. Stallone's deservedly forgotten follow up to his starmaking turn, the gritty, grimey wrestling epic Paradise Alley, which was actually made a year after Mad Bull), where the inherent drama of the film rests in whether or not Iago could actually win his match against the legendary champion. The result of this is a weird combination of slice-of-life realism and absurd fantasy. The film is shot in that ugly, 70s style that gave so much of what was filmed back then the patina of truth, but it presents a world that never really existed. It also does little with several of its more important subplots. For example, much screen time is devoted to the bizarre actions of Coley Turner (Tracey Walter), an obsessed wrestling fan who has decided that Mad Bull has to die before he has the chance to defeat The White Knight in the ring. Much drama is invoked by the build up of this inevitable confrontation as we watch Turner perform several rituals that serve to prove just how fucked up he really is, but then, when the moment finally comes, it amounts to literally nothing more than Turner shouting at Mad Bull before taking a shot at him with a small handgun. He misses, is tackled and is taken away and is never mentioned again1.
But this is forgivable considering just how gripping the final match proves to be. Jeered by the fans in the beginning, Mad Bull slowly begins to win their respect as he refuses to give up and as the supposedly heroic White Knight resorts to dirtier and dirtier tactics to get the win. Eventually the crowd shifts their allegience over to our hero and cheers as he fights for his survival. When he finally wins it is truly a moment to be reckoned with, as the crowd erupts with joy and the "heel" becomes the new champion2.
Needless to say, I wept like a baby when I saw this about 21 years or so ago. I cannot help but wonder how seeing it would effect me now.
I'm guessing I would never be able to stop laughing.
1 According to the back cover of the videocassette, Turner shoots and kills Mad Bull's brother. This could very well have happened, but it isn't how I remember it playing out.
2 Apparently, if IMDb is to be believed, the movie was actually based on a novel that was written in collaboration by two authors. I now have to find a copy of this book, if only to see for myself how it actually took two different writers to concoct this amazing plot.
Filmed in 1977, almost two decades before the major wrestling organizations finally acknowledged that the outcomes in their "sport" were as predetermined as the medal standings in Olympic figure skating, Mad Bull presents a gritty, grimey look at the underbelly of the professional grappling arts. In the film, Karras prepared for his iconic role as the Hooded Fang by portraying Iago "Mad Bull" Karkus, a "heel" wrestler who, when he's not fighting for his life in the ring, is forced to deal with crazed wrestling fans and his own inadequacies as a father. But before he can change his life outside of wrestling, he has to meet the greatest challange of his life--a championship match with the greatest "babyface" of all time, Jake "The White Knight" Braden.
Mad Bull was made in the era where "kayfabe" was strictly enforced in the wrestling world, which probably explains why I remember the film as essentially being a poorman's Rocky (much like Mr. Stallone's deservedly forgotten follow up to his starmaking turn, the gritty, grimey wrestling epic Paradise Alley, which was actually made a year after Mad Bull), where the inherent drama of the film rests in whether or not Iago could actually win his match against the legendary champion. The result of this is a weird combination of slice-of-life realism and absurd fantasy. The film is shot in that ugly, 70s style that gave so much of what was filmed back then the patina of truth, but it presents a world that never really existed. It also does little with several of its more important subplots. For example, much screen time is devoted to the bizarre actions of Coley Turner (Tracey Walter), an obsessed wrestling fan who has decided that Mad Bull has to die before he has the chance to defeat The White Knight in the ring. Much drama is invoked by the build up of this inevitable confrontation as we watch Turner perform several rituals that serve to prove just how fucked up he really is, but then, when the moment finally comes, it amounts to literally nothing more than Turner shouting at Mad Bull before taking a shot at him with a small handgun. He misses, is tackled and is taken away and is never mentioned again1.
But this is forgivable considering just how gripping the final match proves to be. Jeered by the fans in the beginning, Mad Bull slowly begins to win their respect as he refuses to give up and as the supposedly heroic White Knight resorts to dirtier and dirtier tactics to get the win. Eventually the crowd shifts their allegience over to our hero and cheers as he fights for his survival. When he finally wins it is truly a moment to be reckoned with, as the crowd erupts with joy and the "heel" becomes the new champion2.
Needless to say, I wept like a baby when I saw this about 21 years or so ago. I cannot help but wonder how seeing it would effect me now.
I'm guessing I would never be able to stop laughing.
1 According to the back cover of the videocassette, Turner shoots and kills Mad Bull's brother. This could very well have happened, but it isn't how I remember it playing out.
2 Apparently, if IMDb is to be believed, the movie was actually based on a novel that was written in collaboration by two authors. I now have to find a copy of this book, if only to see for myself how it actually took two different writers to concoct this amazing plot.
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