Review of Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows (1998) by Kevin D — 20 Jan 2011

A wrestling documentary of Shakespearean proportions! The film was really interesting to me since I'm a big fan of old school wrestling. The beginning of the movie was especially interesting to me because it showed the behind the scenes process of the film's subject, Bret Hart, summarizing the stereotypes of the other wrestling characters around him. The film was a bit slow when it went over Bret's childhood and when it discussed his father's wrestling school.

Things picked up when the film jumped into Bret's career in the WWF. It was cool to see his rise to power and to see how wrestler's handle their lives outside of the ring. This film was intimate and Hart didn't hide anything. We got to see firsthand how wrestler's handle contracts and how they deal with the limited amount of time they get to spend with their family. The drama really picked up as WWF chairman, Vince McMahon, became the villain and Hart became the tragic hero. The film's climax is the infamous Montreal Screwjob, an event that has always been interesting to me. I had no idea if it was real or fake, but after watching this documentary I can see that it was real and I can see the events that led up to it.

This movie shows how real wrestling is and that wrestler's have feelings too. This is a really good movie that is insightful and I think it could be appreciated as a real life drama by non-wrestling fans.