If it Bleeds, by Isabelle Pauwels’, is a film about ow the MMA has become nothing about fighting and all about the drama. The preface talks about how MMA was supposed to be different from boxing and prowrestling, it was to be nether corrupt nor focused on the fighters and their attitude. It was only ever about the fight. This led it to become the sport of sports, a true test of mental and physical resilience. But eventually all good things come to an end, MMA soon became just as corrupt as boxing and just as drama filled as WWE.
In this film we see a satirical take on many popular fighters, as well as the stereotypical fighters such as; the country boy, beer drinking fighter, and the "bimbo" fighter, with balloons taped to the podium. The film went in depth into mocking real fighters such as Conor Mcgregor and Ronda Rousey. It went in depth on interviews, and used a lot of paraphrasing of real quotes by these fighters, as well as using actual quotes. it highlighted Ronda Rousey misguided attempt to be a role model, and Mcgregor's phony persona. Other characters were involved, but unfortunately I can not remember their names. But they were apart of the movie and helped show that it was not just mocking the 2 or # most well known fighters, but it was mocking the entirety of the MMA public relations. This film was not a laugh out loud film, while it did have some very funny moments, such as the steaks taped to the fighters shoes, but it was more a film that made you chuckle and shake your head. It was a very well put together film and made its point obvious but not too obvious, it didn't insult you by spoon feeding you its message, but by reading the preface and really paying attention to the subtleties within the film it was obvious.
The film didn't mock the sport, but it mocks what it has become out side of the film. There was never a mention that the idea of the sport was wrong and worthy of being made fun of, but how far the sonce great sport has strayed from its core beliefs. It mocks how everything revolves around "Beefs" and pointless drama.I liked that it did not insult the fight itself, I enjoy the true MMA fights, I see it as a form of art. They practice and practice, training their mind and honing their skills, and at the end they put on a performance that is never the same but it brings joy to millions every time. How the "greatest" fighters is only the greatest because the promoters make it so they only face lesser opponents, until the public gets bored of them. Then the "Champ" gets taken down and starts their recovery journey back to the top, meanwhile making millions for the MMA. MMA has turned into a joke and this film accentuates it.
Ian, your thoughts on the film are extremely succinct and reflect its nature well. The nature of this piece was not one of laugh out loud humor that expected every reference and crude punchline to land perfectly, but a gentler, more lighthearted sarcasm poking fun at an observation from the point of view of a spectator. Taking advantage of puns, clichés, and downright fantastic acting, a coherent set of storylines are interwoven with each other to showcase at least some of the different ways that the MMA industry makes and breaks the very fighters that make it famous in the first place.
ReplyDeleteAs you pointed out, these men and women are some of the best in the known professional fighting world, and they dedicate enough effort each and every day to reflect that status. While the battles in the ring themselves are one hundred percent authentic, antics outside the ring and match ups are heavily influenced by managers and overseers. This deliberate outside interference cheapens what these fighters have poured their entire lives into, and is nothing short of a tragedy.
However, I do have to disagree with you about the film’s portrayal of this a little bit as to some of the antics of the fighters that cause so much drama. I feel that while most of them are definitely choreographed and staged, I feel that a good amount of the conflict or words exchanged between the fighters before their matches comes from them directly without anyone telling them to. I feel this way because of the fact that, as stated previously, they have poured their entire lives into the craft of combat. It’s almost impossible to not be at least a little bit prideful of what they do. Stemming from this immense pride is the antics and peculiarly massive votes of self-confidence that fuel them. I know for a fact that if I was that confident in myself at something in particular, I wouldn’t be afraid to boast about it in the least. Thank you for your insights on this movie and helping me enrich my perspective on its message.