Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows
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| Hitman Hart: Wrestling With Shadows | |
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 DVD cover of "Hitman Hart: Wrestling With Shadows" |
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| Directed by | Paul Jay |
| Produced by | Paul Jay |
| Written by | Sally Blake |
| Starring | Bret Hart Julie Hart Vince McMahon Shawn Michaels Stu Hart The Undertaker Pat Patterson Owen Hart Davey Boy Smith Jim Neidhart |
| Distributed by | Vidmark / Trimark |
| Release date(s) | December 20, 1998 |
| Running time | 132 min. |
| Language | English |
Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows is a documentary film which follows World Wrestling Federation superstar Bret Hart during his last year in the WWF, from his WWF Championship victory over The Undertaker at SummerSlam to his final match with the company at Survivor Series on November 9, 1997.
[edit] Plot
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As his contract nears expiration, professional wrestler Bret "Hitman" Hart is torn between two companies, World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling. On one hand, the WWF is his home. The chairman of the company, Vince McMahon, is a father figure to Hart and takes credit for Hart's rise to international wrestling stardom. However, the company's new "attitude" approach has left Hart disgusted and longing for the days of true wrestling heroes.
Ted Turner's WCW, on the other hand, is willing to pay him a great deal to "jump ship" as well as give him a fresh start in a company that offers a more wholesome approach. Hart chooses to remain loyal, and despite the fact that WWF's RAW is WAR is losing the Monday Night Wars to its rival WCW Monday Nitro, he signs a 20 year deal with the WWF. McMahon soon retracts the deal, however, and encourages Hart to move on to WCW, citing financial reasons. This leaves him with no choice but to take WCW President Eric Bischoff's offer and prepare to leave the WWF. But as the still-reigning WWF Champion, conflicts arise regarding his final match with the company, including Hart's unwillingness to drop the WWF Championship. To be more precise, Hart was not willing to lose the title to Shawn Michaels, with whom he holds a bitter, real-life rivarly. This led to one of the most infamous events in professional wrestling known as the Montreal Screwjob.
This documentary is a rare look at professional wrestling behind the scenes. Examples include Hart discussing with The Undertaker and Pat Patterson how matches will proceed, Bret's wife, Julie, accusing Triple H of being in on the "screwjob," and the monstrous Vader discussing his recently acquired real estate license and future career plans.
Wrestling with Shadows also gives a rare look at Hart's family life as well as the Hart House - childhood home to Bret Hart as well as the rest of his extensive, wrestling oriented family. Hart describes the role that wrestling has played in his life while footage is shown of his father, Stu, legitimately applying submission holds on a student of his basement - a notorious training room known as the Dungeon. Hart's wife, Julie, is also interviewed about the toll wrestling has taken on their relationship and raising four children. Hart is shown discussing with both his father and his wife the choice to stay with the WWF or move to WCW. In one instance, his frustration at his kitchen table leads him to ask the director to stop filming.
Other highlights of the documentary include interviews held in the Meadowlands parking lot where the director asks slightly intoxicated and incoherent wrestling fans their take on the ensuing America versus Canada feud, wherein one woman credits Bret Hart as her inspiration for going back to school for computer graphics. Another interviewee claims that Americans don't love their children when they cheer for heel wrestlers like Shawn Michaels and Steve Austin. Another wrestling fan even shares beliefs that a strong connection lies between corporate America and the Undertaker/Bret Hart storyline. His words detail how Americans have to operate through a "by any means necessary" philosophy.
The final act of the film sheds light on the events building up to Survivor Series '97 in which Hart would put his WWF title on the line against Shawn Michaels. Hart is seen entering a private discussion with McMahon on how his final match will play out, which is heard on film due to Hart's wearing a wire. They seem to find common ground and agree to a schmozz. This no contest result would then allow Hart to make a farewell speech the following night on RAW and a dignified retiring of his WWF Championship.
But despite Hart's loyalty, McMahon's paranoia of Hart taking the WWF belt to WCW would not cease, and unbeknownst to Hart, different plans for the outcome of his final match were in place. The result would have him lose the WWF title via forced submission. The referee and close friend to Hart, Earl Hebner, takes orders from McMahon at ringside to end the match in Michaels' favor before quickly fleeing to a getaway car backstage. An angered Hart spits in McMahon's face, smashes nearby TV monitors, and spells out "WCW" with his finger to the shocked crowd. Hart questions Michaels about the incident backstage only to have him plead ignorance, pretending to act similarly angered about the situation (he later revealed that he was in on the plan all along), and candid footage also shows a groggy McMahon and company leaving from their failed backstage confrontation with Hart. The documentary then closes with the immediate aftermath of the Montreal incident and captions detailing the state of Hart's career.
[edit] Trivia
- According to Bret Hart, McMahon attempted to purchase the rights to Wrestling with Shadows in order to remove incriminating footage before releasing it. He failed, and the film was released with the scene of McMahon stumbling through a backstage hallway after being punched by Hart and having his ankle nearly broken by being accidentally stepped on.
- The documentary's legacy in the world of professional wrestling helped paved the way for other critically acclaimed films including Beyond the Mat and Forever Hardcore.
- It won numerous film festival awards and has aired several times on both A&E and the Documentary Channel, a Canadian broadcast.
- The film title was incorrectly stated as Hitman Hart: Wrestling in the Shadows in a Documentary Channel promo during its Wild World of Sports month.
- Wrestling with Shadows was released on VHS format to both the United States and United Kingdom in 1999 but as of now, has only been released on DVD to the latter in 2004. A soundtrack was also released on October 19, 1999 featuring artists such as Rob Zombie and Days of the New.
