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Chad is back with his Step UncAL and delivers the Full BingeViews on Don’t Breathe 2 and Free Guy.
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Chad C has a super early Suicide Squad review to hold you over for the next couple weeks and throws in Jungle Cruise and The Green Night because he’s a decent guy.
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This column will introduce you to the most popular movies that are coming out in theaters this weekend.
Baysed on the 90’s hit TV show, this bay story is about Mitch Buchanan a resident lifeguard who must reluctantly join forces with his new recruit to stop a criminal that can jeopardize the future of the Bay. OH NO!!!! Starring in this action comedy are Dwayne Johnson, Zac Efron, Alexandra Daddario, Hannibal Buress, Rob Huebel, The Hoff, and Pam Anderson. Seth Gordon is the director of this reboot. Gordon has directed Identity Thief, Horrible Bosses, and The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters. Now go take your Bae to watch Baywatch. So gross is what I’m baysically saying. Ok, I’ll stop.
Captain Jack is back for the 5th installment of the Pirates franchise. Sparrow once again gets into shenanigans…this time being hunted by Captain Salazar and the only thing that can save him is the retrieval of the trident of Poseidon. Starring in this fanta-sea adventure are Johnny Depp, Javier Bardem, Geoffrey Rush, Brenton Thwaites (Oculus), Kaya Scodelario (The Maze Runner), Kevin McNally, and a rumored Paul McCartney. 2 new directors are on board for this flick. They are Joachim Ronning and Espen Sandberg who directed 2006’s Bandidas. It seems Sandberg has signed on to direct Pirates 6. Now go sea this flick this weekend.
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This column will introduce you to the most popular movies that are coming out in theaters this weekend and why you should go see them.
Fast 8. Furious 8. F8 of the Furious. Furiou8. Anyway, Dom is back again. However, it seems Dom may be switching sides. Dun Dun Dun. Starring in this elaborate car chase/heist flick are Vin (I am Groot) Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Charlize Theron, Jason Statham, Scott Eastwood, Kurt Russell, Michelle Rodriguez, Helen Mirren, and more. Directing Fast 8 is F. Gary Gray. Gray has directed A Man Apart, The Italian Job, Be Cool, Law Abiding Citizen, and Straight Outta Compton. It seems Gray has worked with Vin, The Rock, and Charlize before. Go see F8 this weekend.
You’re lost. Ok Jax, relax. Based on a true story, The Lost City of Z is about a British explorer who goes missing while searching for a mysterious city in the 1920’s. Starring in this real-life action adventure tale are Charlie Hunnam, Robert Pattinson, Sienna Miller, Tom Holland, Ian McDiarmid, and more. James Gray is the writer/director of this flick. Gray has written and directed The Yards, We Own the Night, Two Lovers, and The Immigrant. Use that GPS and don’t get lost on your way to the theater this weekend.
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This column will introduce you to the most popular movies that are coming out in theaters this weekend and why you should go see them. Which one will you see?
Reasons to see this:
Allied is about an intelligence officer and a French Resistance fighter, who join forces and fall in love during times of war. Brad Pitt and Marion Cotillard (cue Ammon saying her name) star in this dramaction movie. The director of Allied is Robert Zemeckis. Zemeckiseseses last 4 directorial films are Beowulf, A Christmas Carol, Flight, and The Walk. I saw this movie. It’s great. Ok, I didn’t see it. Sorry that Allied.
Reasons to see this:
Wille and Marcus are back, attempting to rob a Chicago charity on Christmas Eve. Billy Bob Thornton, Tony Cox, and Brett Kelly return for the sequel. New cast members include Kathy Bates, Christina Hendricks, Ryan Hansen and more. Directing the Santa sequel is Mark Waters. Waters last 4 directorial films were The Spiderwick Chronicles, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, Mr. Popper’s Penguins, and Vampire Academy. If you loved the first one, then check out Bad Santa 2.
Reasons to see this:
Based on a true story, Lion is about a young man who was lost and adopted 25 years ago, who now sets out to find his family. The cast for this dramatic flick includes, Rooney Mara, Nicole Kidman, Dev Patel, David Wenham (Lord of the Rings), and more. Garth Davis is the director on this picture. Davis has directed some TV, a Short, and a Documentary. I heard this movie is good. I’m not Lion.
Reasons to see this:
Moana tells the story of a young girl and a demi-god, who are on an adventure to find a secret island. The cast that lends their voice in this animated flick are, Auli’i Cravalho (Moana), Dwayne Johnson, Jemaine Clement, Alan Tudyk, and more. There are four directors on this movie. They are Ron Clements, Don Hal, John Musker, and Chris Williams. They all have worked in animation before. That’s all you need to know. If you love your Disney movies, then you’ll Moana see this one.
Reasons to see this:
Memba Warren Beatty? I memba Warren Beatty. Well, he’s back, acting and directing this flick. Rules Don’t Apply is a period piece about an actress who falls in love with her driver, while dealing with the rich boss they work for. Also starring in the movie are Alden Ehrenreich, Matthew Broderick, Candice Bergen, Martin Sheen, Annette Bening, and more. Go check out Rules Don’t Apply this weekend.
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This week’s BingeCast was a first, as we recorded the whole thing in three different segments. How does this affect your listening pleasure? By fucking enhancing it, that’s how. The show isn’t linear as all of our other BingeCasts, but we feel that adds to the looseness of this episode.
Law, Ammon and myself decide to break up the recording of this because of life shit, but it actually turned out pretty fun as we got to bullshit about other shit than movies and TV, although there’s PLENTY of that. Law and I talk about getting drunk and tripping on acid as young assholes. Ammon and I talk about Halloween decorations. We all get drunk and yell.
The format is a little up in the air this week but What Did You Watch has reviews of Colonia, Central Intelligence, Jason Bourne, The Homesman, Zombeavers, Pay the Ghost, Paranormal Activity: Ghost Dimension, Cold in July and an amazing accent review of The Puuuuurge: Election Year.
TV Round Up features American Horror Story, South Park, Baskets, Quarry, Vice Principals and your mom.
More talk of Emmys, Howard Stern shitting on Windsor, Google Voice with Macho Man and review of Riot Fest by Kupka, whether or not Monster Squad should be shown to kids and Rolling Stones Top 100 TV Shows of all time.
I am also doing a 31 Days of Halloween but only the best of the best. Comment below with your choices. I’ll watch that shit. Shut up.
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It’s time to catch my breath. The past few months in sports have been absolutely fantastic, and it’s finally time for a little break. Every single event that I’ve written about or discussed on the newest addition to the Binge Media podcast network, the Binge SportsCast, has given sports fans great drama and some excellent games, matches, and/or rounds. We started with the NCAA Tournament, moved onto Wrestlemania, watched history at the Masters, and saw some great basketball and hockey before crowning two new champions. This past weekend, the US Open gave us some great theater despite a lackluster golf course and horrible coverage from FOX, which you can read about HERE.
So what does that leave us with now? Well, the two pictures you saw above are probably the two biggest things in sports this week. Tomorrow night, we’ve got the 2015 NBA Draft and this weekend we’ve got the quarterfinals of the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup. If you’re looking for coverage on that here today, then I’m sorry to disappoint you. I may tune in for a little while for the NBA Draft, but I’m not going to sit here and give you a mock draft. Let the picks fall where they may, and I’ll talk basketball once the season gets going again. As far as the Women’s World Cup is concerned, I apologize to those who wanted full coverage. The fact is that I will not insult you by attempting to write on an event that I’m not that familiar with. Sure, I could go to another website, take a few notes and word it differently, but that’s really not my style. You would see through the lack of passion and you don’t deserve that. I’ll be getting into the heart of baseball season very soon, especially with the All-Star break coming up. It’s been a very good first half of the year thus far (and it’s a Cubs vs Cardinals weekend so I won’t be taking that long of a break), and I’ve already got plans to record a new Binge SportsCast the night after the All-Star Game. As for next week’s show, I’m still kicking a few things around, so if you’ve got ideas or questions you’d like answered, just let me know. And speaking of podcasts, in case you missed it, I urge and invite you to check out this week’s Monday Morning Moreno titled “Up Close & Personal w/ Luke Norris”. Alyx took a big risk doing a personal show like this, but we had an absolute blast recording it, and even in the first couple of days, we’ve gotten some great response to it, so kudos to Moreno for thinking outside the box and trying something different. Thanks brother. You can check that out HERE.
But I’m still the Binge Media sports guy. So even without big events this week, I’ve got to give you something, right? Luckily, I ran into a few sports-related items over the past few days, so allow me to do a little something different myself and get into some sports on the screen.
While the bigger news on HBO was coming from the second season of True Detective (which I’m sure somebody here will get to at some point), another part of the new Sunday night was a brand new show, Ballers, starring Dwayne Johnson (he doesn’t seem to be using “The Rock” for this one, so I’ll leave it out).
Johnson stars as Spencer Strasmore, a retired defensive end for the Miami Dolphins who’s suffered some sort of injury that hasn’t been completely explained yet, but has left football to try his hand as a financial advisor/planner. While he will be the focus of the show, there are a few more stories that we’ll be given, one involving a current wide receiver with anger issues and off-the-field problems, a former O-lineman who has retired (played by Omar Benson Miller, who is usually pretty solid)and is now working at a car dealership, and a sports agent played by Troy Garity, who you probably know as the white guy from Barbershop. The added bonus is Rob Corddry, who plays Johnson’s associate and wants to use Strasmore’s connections to the NFL as a way to make more money.
If you haven’t watched the episode yet, I won’t spoil anything for you, but I’ll say it was decent. It wasn’t great. It wasn’t terrible. It was……well, decent. There were a few obvious cliches that could have been avoided, but with it being the first episode, I’ll cut it some slack….for now. Basically, all of these guys are intertwined from their time in the league, but are now headed down different paths, while still being involved in each other’s lives. The stories have the chance to be there, so we’ll give it some time to see how things develop. If I had to put a number on it, I’d with 6.5/10 for the moment. From the things I’ve read and future scenes I’ve seen, things are looking up, and we can only hope that there’s more banter between Johnson and Corddry. I would have never have thought to put those two together, but from what I’ve seen so far, it looks like they’ve got some chemistry. I’ll check back in at the end of the season to let you know what I thought.
Let’s put it this way. It’s kinda like the sports version of this….
….it’s got a ways to go before it’s as good as this….
….but it’s bound to be better than this.
The great part of watching HBO is sometimes to see what else is coming up on HBO, and I’m jacked to watch what’s coming in a few weeks.
If you’re not familiar yet with 7 Days in Hell, I suggest you keep reading and prepare yourself. What we’re looking at here is basically a mockumentary starring Andy Samberg and Kit Harington as tennis rivals who played the longest match in tennis history, a match that lasted….you guessed it, seven days. Basically, what we’re looking at here is a 30 for 30 spoof and it’s going to be glorious. As I mentioned, you’ve got Samberg and Harington as the stars, but just look at the names that will be involved here and tell me you’re not in. Will Forte, Lena Dunham, Mary Steenburgen, Michael Sheen, Howie Mandel, June Squibb, Fred Armisen, David Copperfield, Chris Evert, Serena Williams, John McEnroe, Soledad O’Brien, and Jim Lampley all make appearances. Just watch the trailer and tell me you’re not going to watch.
I thought so.
Okay, there’s no jokes here. This is an actual documentary and it’s great. Written and directed by Bert Marcus, Champs follows the journey of three of the greatest boxers of my generation in Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, and Bernard Hopkins. I could have done without some of the recreation of their respective childhoods in the beginning of the film, but a cheesy movie critic would call this movie “a knockout”.
I’ve always been a boxing fan, as I’m sure you’ve gathered with the multiple articles I’ve written for this site alone. I’ve watched a lot of documentaries about the sport, and I won’t lie and pretend this is the best one I’ve ever seen, but it’s very solid. All three boxers give very candid interviews about their upbringing. Most people are familiar with Mike Tyson’s childhood, so some of that wasn’t new to me, but some of the younger footage was. Watching the progression of Tyson throughout the years has always been fascinating. To hear him talk now about the person he was versus the person he is today makes the whole film worthwhile, but there’s so much more.
I knew Bernard Hopkins was in prison as a younger man, but I was unaware that he was in a boxing circuit during his time inside. Listening to him talk about how boxing saved his life and following his journey to become the oldest champion in boxing history is a great story.
Evander Holyfield has a great story to tell as well. One of my favorite parts of the whole film is when he talks about how he came from poverty as well, just like Tyson did. He just didn’t act like it, so everyone thought that he didn’t have as big of a chip on his shoulder that Tyson did. They go into his screwjob from the Olympics, how he won the light heavyweight crown and still didn’t feel accomplished, how he squandered his money, and everything in between.
That’s only the tip of the iceberg as to what this film gets into. Not only are the respective stories of these three men covered, but the sport as a whole is dissected with interviews from promoters, trainers, and celebrities who follow the sport, which includes Denzel Washington, Mark Wahlberg, 50 Cent, and many more. This is an easy 8 or 8.5/10.
So there you have it. Even in my “down time”, I’ve still got your sports covered. Stay tuned for more great things from the rest of the boys this week. I’ll be back with an all-new Working the Weekend with Luke on Sunday, and an all-new Binge SportsCast next week. Again, if you’ve got questions for me on anything, leave them below or hit me up on Twitter @BingeSports and/or @THElukenorris. Until next time, I’ll leave you with another trailer about sports on-screen that’s got me excited. See you soon.
Damn, it’s been a while since I’ve put that logo up, so it’s nice to be able to say welcome back to Working the Weekend with Luke. For the last few weeks, there’s been so much going on in the sports world that my Binge Sports columns have been substituting for this one in my normal Sunday slot. Don’t get me wrong. I love writing about sports, but it’s nice to branch out from time to time, and I do have some Binge Sports info for you, but we’ll get to that in a little while. But before I get to that announcement, I’d hate myself if I didn’t once again mention how sad I am about the death of Lauren Hill. I’ve been following her inspirational story from the start and I can never say enough about how this courageous young woman impacted me. If you missed my story on Friday afternoon, click HERE. RIP Lauren.
But what else have I been up to lately? I’m so happy you asked.
FURIOUS 7
This is exactly what an action movie is supposed to be….and more. Yeah, I know most of the guys have hit on it at one point or another over the past week, but I just couldn’t help but commenting on it. I’ll admit that when the series first started, I basically refused to see it. I don’t even think I saw the first one until maybe five years after it came out. But all of a sudden, they started to become guilty pleasures that I just couldn’t turn off. Was the acting the greatest? Come on…it was Paul Walker and Vin Diesel. But I was entertained. Give me Jordana Brewster and Michelle Rodriguez to boot. Yeah, I’m in. Then we throw in Tyrese Gibson, Ludacris, and Eva Mendes in the sequel. A little more comedy and well…Eva Mendes. Sure, Tokyo Drift was the weakest in the series, but when the main cast reunited for the fourth installment, I was intrigued so I checked it out. And once again I was back in. And then you throw in The Rock and Gal Gadot and Gina Carano in the next couple flicks. Yeah, I’m in.
Then I hear that Kurt Russell has joined in. Jason Statham shows up as the new villain. Djimon Hounsou comes on board. Ronda Rousey gets a chick fight with Michelle Rodriguez. Yes please! And then tragedy strikes. In a cruel and way too ironic accident, Paul Walker dies in a freaking car crash. Wait, seriously? Now, whether or not you were a fan of Paul Walker is irrelevant. Was he the best actor in the world? Certainly not. But I’ll make the same point that Jack made on Tuesday. He was perfect for this franchise. His on-screen chemistry with Vin Diesel was fantastic. And if they had been a real life couple, he and Jordana Brewster could seriously have made some of the prettiest babies ever. On screen, this is where some of the great drama was in this film. There’s a real family element here now. Not just the “familia” stuff that Vin spouts about, but an actual man, woman, and children (minor spoiler) family. And this is really where the story gets you.
But before we get to that, let me get to the action without giving away too much. The first big fight scene between Statham and The Rock is just awesome, and I will tell you that Statham gets a Rock Bottom through a table. For you non-wrestling folks, you may not understand the reference, but as a fan, it was nice. Keep it real Dwayne! Were some of the stunts over the top? Of course they were. Did it work? Of course it did. Yeah, I know you’re all skeptical about the cars dropping out of a plane scene, but the ridiculousness is overshadowed by the brilliant comedy of Tyrese in this scene. Seriously, I don’t know what day he decided to not just be a singer, but I’m happy about the decision. He brings a different element to these movies and it’s been great. The back and forth between he and Luda is phenomenal and has been for a few movies now.
There’s almost too much to get to. There’s Kurt Russell, who you sometimes forget just how awesome he is until he pops up in movies from time to time these days. But he’s Kurt Russell, so you know it’s good. Fun fact: they tried to get Denzel but he declined. Of course, there’s the revenge story of Han. And kudos to Lucas Black for making an appearance. Then you’ve got the Dom-Leti relationship and her memory loss. Yes, the result is pretty much impossible, but it’s a nice ride (pun intended) to get where we get to with that.
But the end is really what the movie is about. After Walker’s death, I was so curious on how they could finish things up, but I don’t think it could have gone any more perfectly. Before I give the ending away, I’m going to stop and just say that you’re not supposed to get emotional at anything having to do with this franchise. You’re supposed to go to the movies for a couple hours and just have some fun and not think about anything. But knowing what you know when you go in, you can’t help but get choked up at certain points. And the very end…forget about it. It’s the perfect tribute with some perfect words from Vin Diesel. I never thought I’d write that sentence, but it’s the truth. Now I know the plan is to make three more, but I wish they would leave it alone. For a blockbuster, it really does give you everything. It would be the perfect ending to one of the most successful franchises in cinematic history.
Wow, where do I go from there?
Well, I finally made the jump. DirecTV is gone and I’m now for the most part a streaming-only kind of guy.
I went out and bought the Roku 3 and it’s what I run just about everything through. You’d think they were paying me, but they’re not, but I highly recommend this for anyone who’s not using the smart TV. It’s got the ability to run all the channels and services that you’re looking for, but I’ve found that I really don’t need that much.
As of right now, these are really the only ones that I need. Netflix is well….Netflix. I wish they had more newer movies to stream, but if you’re looking to binge a television show, this is the place for you. They’ve got just about everything you’re looking for on that end, not to mention their own original programming like The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, which was absolutely fantastic.
Hulu Plus lets me keep up with some of the broadcast stations, which I can still get with a little in-house antennae that I bought. But if I’m looking for Saturday Night Live or The Last Man on Earth (which is great), then I can find them here. You do have to deal with a few ads, but it’s really not that bad.
Sling TV gives me the rest. This is where I can get my ESPN, TBS, TNT, and AMC. You know I need my sports and my Better Call Saul. The original package is only $20 per month, but you can add more channels if you want to pay a little more. Overall, though, it’s really worth the price.
Overall, I’ve cut my bill by more than half every month. I have all the content I really need and I don’t have to worry about a storm screwing up my dish. I should have done this a long time ago. Welcome to 2015 Luke. Idiot.
Now, I know this one isn’t for everybody, but I also pay the $9.99 per month for my WWE Network. If you’re a wrestling guy or gal, just do yourself a favor and sign up already. I’ve had it for a few months now, and I’ve been kicking myself for not doing it sooner. Not only do you get every single pay-per-view that comes up, but they have every single one from the past. Every. Single. One. Just get on it. It’s worth it.
And that leads me to the big announcement.
Well, due to the great response from the Wrestlemania podcast, the Binge Sportscast will now be a regular thing here at Binge Media. I know, how many more can we fit in, right? But I’m extremely excited about the opportunity to do this. I can’t tell you that it will be a weekly thing on a certain day, but when big events are happening, I’ll be there to cover it. One definite is that Batch and I will be doing a monthly wrestling podcast right around PPV time. I’m not sure whether we’re going to do it before or after each show, but we’re working on the format now. I don’t have a definite date just yet, but Kupka and I will be bringing you constant coverage of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, so we’re excited about that. I’m also working on finding a co-host for the NBA Playoffs podcast, so stay tuned for that as well. Since I started doing the Better Call Saul show with Kupka and Jack, I’ve been having a blast. Throw in the fun that I had with Batch for the premiere of the Binge Sportscast, and I can see why all these guys want to do it all the time. So that’s the big news, and I couldn’t be more excited about it.
Wow. That was a lot to get to. But hey, I had to make up for the last few weeks. I’m sure you understand. So what do you think about all of what I just talked about? Did you love Furious 7 as much as I did? Do you have stories about cutting the cord? Are you on board with the new Binge Sportscast? Is there something coming up you’d like me to cover? Let me know below or find and follow me on Twitter @THElukenorris and @BingeSports. Believe me, you’ll be seeing a lot of me coming up as the NBA and NHL Playoffs get underway this week. I’ll see you soon.
Welcome to another Binge Media Sports crossover version of the film revisit. Today, we celebrate the 25th anniversary of the release of No Holds Barred, starring the one and only immortal Hulk Hogan. Didn’t see this one coming, did you? That’s right, folks. I am still to this day a huge wrestling mark and on June 2, 1989, I was at Westlake Cinemas in my hometown of Peoria, IL for opening day to check out one of my childhood idols first starring role. Sure, he had been Thunderlips in Rocky III, and a guest spot on The A-Team, and had been entertaining the millions and millions (take that Dwayne) of wrestling fans for years as the top guy in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now the WWE). So there I am, with my homemade T-shirt and the specialty magazine that had come out the week before that I had gotten for my birthday and I was ready to watch the Hulkster kick some serious ass.
No Holds Barred stars Hulk Hogan as Rip, the current WWF champion (yes, I will be saying WWF until the end, so if the World Wildlife Fund wants to call me, go right ahead), obviously true to life back in the day as Hogan was an international icon as the actual champ. In an early scene as he defends his championship with cameos from Mean Gene Okerlund and Jesse Ventura, Rip shows his tenacity by basically “hulking up” and proving once again, he’s the best in the world. His younger brother, Randy, is Rip’s biggest fan and is always on hand to cheer on his big brother (keep that plot point in mind).
However, things start to turn as a TV executive from a rival network wants to cash in on Rip’s popularity, Played by Kurt Fuller, Mr. Brell tries to buy Rip onto his network with a blank check, but Rip downright refuses.
Unhappy with this decision, Brell sends his thugs to change Rip’s mind and teach him a lesson, resulting in an amazing fight scene that ends with a classic encounter.
Well, if Brell couldn’t convince Rip with force, then he’ll go with another option, a hot chick. So he sends Samantha, played by Joan Severance, to spy on Rip and change his mind yet again. But wouldn’t you know it, after some playful flirting and crazy sexual tension, she can’t resist the charm of the champ and joins the good guys in their battle against the evil Brell.
So now Brell is really pissed off, and if he can’t have Rip, then he will find a way to completely destroy him. So he comes up with his own brand of fighting program called “Battle of the Tough Guys”, which would probably draw huge ratings in the world we live in today. It’s just random tough guys fighting in bars and he promises the winner $100,000 and just when he thinks he has a champion, in walks this man….
ZEUS! You’re damn right that’s Deebo from Friday. Zeus is an ex-con and he walks in and destroys everyone that is put in front of him and becomes the new face of violence. Brell immediately begins to control him, and soon enough, it’s time to issue a challenge to Rip at a charity function.
But not wanting to set a bad example in front of the children, Rip holds back and refuses the challenge. But as Zeus continues to destroy opponents, Randy decides he must see for himself what all the hype is about the man who wants to destroy his brother. Wearing his “Rip ‘Em” attire, he is confronted by Brell and Zeus after a fight and his idiot friend blurts out that he is Rip’s brother and then Randy proceeds to be pummeled by Zeus. Shit just got real. After destroying Zeus’ private gym, Rip decides that he has no choice but to fight Zeus, but not before visiting Randy in the hospital, which gave us an emotional scene that includes the Hulkster crying on camera.
As fight night comes, it’s clear that this will be the toughest challenge of Rip’s life, and to make matters worse, Brell wants to guarantee that his boy will come out on top and kidnaps Samantha and orders Rip to lose if he wants to ever see her again. As the match begins, Rip has no choice but to let Zeus dominate the match.
But as the match continues, Rip’s trainer and one time trainer of Zeus, Charlie, rescues Samantha and they return, along with Randy, to cheer on our hero as he tries to fight his way back into the match. But if there’s anything we’ve learned from 30 years of Hulkamania, it’s that you never count out the immortal one. Brell is beside himself as he sees his plan falling apart, and starts yanking electrical wires from the walls. Rip is fully in control now and the fight leaves the ring and up into the stands for our big finale. Rip seals the victory by knocking Zeus from the catwalk all the way back down to the ring, collapsing it and leaving a bloody Zeus as the loser.
As Rip walks towards Brell to confront the thorn that’s been in his side the whole movie, Brell backs into the live wires that he himself pulled out and electrocutes himself, leaving our heroes with no more fights to fight, and Rip reunites with Randy in a beautiful finish.
I remember coming out of the theater as a kid and being so excited about what I had just seen. Is the movie cheesy? Yes. But is it still awesome? Yes. It also crossed over into the WWF that summer. As Vince McMahon, who also was the executive producer on the movie, likes to do, he used the movie to create a storyline for Hulk Hogan. He brought the Zeus character in to challenge the real Hulk Hogan throughout that summer, which culminated at Summerslam ’89 in a match that saw Hogan team with Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake to battle Zeus and Hogan’s longtime friend and rival, the late great Randy “Macho Man” Savage.
That show also saw the return of the beautiful Miss Elizabeth, who had taken a break after the yearlong storyline between Hogan and Savage that saw Hogan win back his title at WrestleMania V. I still watch this match from time to time and it ended with Hogan once again getting the better of his movie rival.
It’s been pretty awesome to look back at this movie that I loved so much as a kid. As I talked about, I remember the theater as a kid and right after I broke my arm that fall, my dad took me to the video store to pick out any movie I wanted and it was the night before this was being released on VHS, so they had the boxes out, but not the actual tapes yet, but my dad talked the clerk into letting us have it anyway just so I could watch it that night, and I must have watched it at least 4 or 5 times over the next couple of days. And just a few years ago, the WWE (now I’ll call them that) actually released it on DVD and Blu-Ray so the next generation of wrestling fans can watch this classic for years to come.
So on this 25th Anniversary, I salute No Holds Barred. I’ve been a fan of Hulk Hogan for most of my life. I remember my dad taking me to see him and putting me on his shoulders so I could watch him slam the One Man Gang at the Civic Center. It’s WrestleMania III and the biggest moment in wrestling history happened as Hogan slammed Andre. It’s all the battles with Savage or Warrior and the NWO and everything else that I could use as another story for another day. But today is about the movie, so instead of saying that Hulk Still Rules (which he does), I’ll just say “Rip ‘Em”……..BROTHER!
If you’d like to comment on the movie, feel free to do so below or tweet @THElukenorris