The Wrestler (2008) Critic Reviews

The Wrestler is a character study, no more and no less, yet it's open-ended enough to function as many things.Read the full review

This is Rourke doing astonishing physical acting.Read the full review

The Wrestler is like "Rocky" made by the Scorsese of "Mean Streets." It's the rare movie fairy tale that's also a bravura work of art.Read the full review

The Wrestler doesn't add up. It's constructed with great care around a lead performance that is everything it could possibly be, but the picture itself is off-putting and disappointing.Read the full review

Aronofsky's directorial style is simple and spare. There are no flourishes or attempts to convince us that he is a master of his craft.Read the full review

You watch The Wrestler (with a superb title song from Bruce Springsteen) in a state of pure exhilaration. A great actor in a great movie will do that to you.Read the full review

The movie has the simplicity and confidence of a Johnny Cash song.Read the full review

The Ram is sometimes--often, even--a manipulative, self-pitying man, but Rourke and Aronofsky paint his portrait with a rigorous dignity.Read the full review

Bolstered by a career-best performance from Mickey Rourke and outstanding work by Marisa Tomei and Evan Rachel Wood.Read the full review