(1998) Wrestling With Shadows - 90 Minute Film Documentary (Blog #2)

Bret "The Hitman" Hart

This film documentary is about Bret "The Hitman" Hart who is one of the greatest wrestlers in WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) history. This documentary crosses many subjects such as Bret's personal life, his wrestling career, and most importantly, the controversy that happened during "Survivor Series" (which is a big pay per view event that happens every month) in 1997.

The controversy that happened was about Bret Hart's departure from the WWE (WWF at the time) to join the WCW (another huge wrestling company) after 14 long years. He had the title as the World Champion before this night and the event was taking place in his home country of Canada (Montreal). The World Wrestling Federation saw a dilemma, when Bret saw a simple solution. The company wanted Bret to lose the belt to his arch nemesis Shawn Michaels but Bret refused to lose in his own country so the owner Vince McMahon told both Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart different stories. He told Bret the match would end as a draw and he can just submit the title the following night but behind his back, he told Shawn Michaels that he was going to win the match so that's exactly what happened. Bret simply got screwed and lost the belt in front of his fans and country.

This was the night "The Hitman" got screwed and Shawn Michaels defeated Bret Hart

This documentary gave me the "behind the scenes" look of that night, something I have been wondering for 14 years now and they did a magnificent job at it. They approached it from every angle and gave the viewer exactly what they needed to understand what exactly happened.

Overall, i really enjoyed this documentary. It gave me a lot of closure of how my favorite wrestler of all time who i grew up watching got screwed. Also, the biography-type part of where they talk about Bret's childhood was alright as well but the controversy that happened in 1997 is what really got me.

Grade for Doc: A

Link to Documentary: http://www.nfb.ca/film/hitman_hart_wrestling_with_shadows

Marketplace: Big Gym Ripoff - MAGAZINE DOC PART 1: (Blog #2)

This documentary touches upon the problem people have with gyms. Many people are being robbed of their money as gyms keep charging their credit cards even after they cancel their memberships. However this doc has ridiculous stories, like one man is claiming his previous gym owes him 2 thousand dollars. Really? Have you not realized for the past while that your being charged for something your not using? I just really think that alone made this documentary go bad.

Some people's banks end up coming out the "biggest loser" after they're done with the gym.

However, it did raise some interesting points, and points I should really look out for. Such as always checking and making sure I'm not being a victim of fraud after i decide to cancel my membership or after it expires. I have been with the same gym for 4 years now but in those 4 years I have been paying cash until this year. I now charge it on my credit card so every month the gym takes out 32 dollars from my credit card. Now after my membership expires and i decide to join another gym, (which I'm really considering) I better keep an eye on them and make sure I'm not being charged for a service I'm not using.

Overall, they had some pretty interesting points, but the stories they had were just too much. Sure they made the gyms look bad, but it made those people with the stories look even worse just because they are not aware of what was going on in their bank accounts which is not responsible and most of all, just plain dumb.

Grade for Doc: C

Link to Documentary: http://www.cbc.ca/marketplace/2011/biggymripoff/

60 Minutes: Eminem - MAGAZINE DOC PART 2: (Blog #2)

Eminem grew up right by 8 Mile Rd; one of the worst areas in Detroit

This documentary is about famous rapper Eminem and his life. It talks about how he grew up and the struggles he went through like switching schools all the time (3 times a year) and getting bullied as a kid. His father also left him when he was just 6 months old and when asked if he would like to meet his father, he just simply said "no" which i can respect. He went through a lot and grew up in one of the worst neighbourhoods in Detroit, Michigan which really makes me find this new respect for him just because you don't find many people who lived under those conditions and come out not only successful, but this man changed rap music forever.

Eminem

They also talk about the public's perception of him, after being ridiculed for being a bad influence to children all over the world because of his profane lyrics. Eminem however disagrees with those people and claims that's what he was accustomed to growing up and he never speaks that way to anybody, its just in his music where he uses explicit words.

Overall, this doc was very well done and Anderson Cooper did a great job asking very personal questions and pushed those buttons a lot which gave the viewer an understand who Eminem the person is, not the rapper.

Grade for Doc: A

Link to Documentary: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCbtvBEPPs8

Beyond The Glory: Kobe Bryant - TV DOC (Blog #2)

Kobe Bryant does what it takes to be number 1.

Kobe Bryant is a worker for a simple word. This guy does whatever it takes to be the best and he'll climb any mountain that stands in his path and they backed that statement up with interviews from his teammates and coaches which i thought was great. A good example of that is when his teammates would go to clubs and party but Kobe would instead go to the gym to work on his game.

One thing they didn't talk about a huge controversy that happened when Kobe Bryant was accused for sexually assaulting a woman at a hotel. That had to be one of the biggest things in sports during that time and Kobe received a lot of hate because of it. Even though he was just a normal celebrity being accused of something that was mutual just so the lady could make a quick buck. So not putting that in is a huge hole because i really think that could of enhanced this documentary.

Overall, pretty well done and i can say i enjoyed learning about the greatest basketball player in the NBA right now but as i said, they should of added something very important which was the sexual assault scandal.

Grade for Doc: B+

Link to part 1 of 4 Documentary: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N86r0L-nh-I