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Long-time wrestler Jerry Lynn, 45, also appears this Saturday. We talked to him about his “uncanny” resemblance to Mickey Rourke’s character.
What about the movie did you find uncanny?
[The Ram's] look of course. And when he mentions how Kurt Cobain ruined metal, I’ve been saying that for years. Because all the girls would go out all decked out in mini skirts and high heels, and when grunge came along all the girls started wearing torn jeans and flannel shirts looking like homeless vagrants. I thought, “What happened?” … There’s a couple rough parts in the movie where he got to see his daughter after he hadn’t seen her for years. [My situation] wasn’t that extreme but there’s been times where I’ve had to move to another city to get work and so I’d go months without seeing my daughter, so that was pretty hard. I started crying. My daughter saw it with me, and she started crying. It hit home pretty hard.
What was going through your head to see so many things in the film that reminded you of yourself?
I guess at the end of the film what really went through my head was, “Did I just waste the last 20 years of my life pursuing this?” [Laughs] That’s what really went through my head. I can’t say that I’ve wasted it. ‘Cause it’s been a good run. I’ve gotten to see parts of the world I never would have seen. All the sacrifices were pretty much worth it except for the part of missing seeing half my daughter’s life growing up.
How would you have played the character differently if it were actually based on you?
If it was portrayed after me I think it would have been a little more feel-good. When I go to these shows and stuff I still go and have a great time. And [The Ram] seemed pretty melancholy and kind of depressed about the whole thing. But I still go and have a great time.
Matt Pais is the metromix music and movies producer. mpais@tribune.com
