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Rumble Blu-ray Review

“Rumble” never lives up to its potential. 

In a universe where humans and giant monsters co-exist, monster wrestling (WMW) is THE biggest sport (quite literally). The entire economy of cities even revolves around it like Stoker. At the start of this tale, Stoker is the proud home of the wrestler Tentacular. Alas, upon becoming champion, Tentacular turns his back on Stoker and leaves for Slitherpoole (a comical knock on LeBron James). Now, Stoker is in need of a new monster wrestler or else the stadium will be turned into a parking lot. Winnie (the daughter of the legendary coach Jimbo) takes it upon herself to find a new wrestler. She discovers Steve The Stupendous who turns out to be the son of the famed monster wrestler Rayburn (who Jimbo coached). Steve, who is in debt, reluctantly decides to join Winnie despite being clumsy and lacking wrestling skills. However, his love of salsa dancing just might come in handy in matches. Will Steve and Winnie be a successful combo or will their efforts end in disaster?

Directed by Hamish Grieve, the CGI animated film “Rumble” was initially bound for theaters but instead went to Paramount+. On paper, the 2021 animated feature sounds like a fun high concept action-comedy as it blends Kaiju/monsters with wrestling sports entertainment (WWE Studios is even involved). Alas, the cliched underdog story is too safe, choreographed, and strangely too dull to ever get viewers cheering.

Writers Hamish Grieve and Matt Lieberman simply don’t think big enough for this movie. For a movie involving wrestling, there should have been more wrestling characters and more elaborate and thrilling matches. Sure, the battles with Ramarilla and Tentacular are crowd pleasers, but that doesn’t make a movie. Moreover, the lead character with Steve (AKA Rayburn Jr.) couldn’t have been a more boring choice. When your villain/heel Tentacular is better than everything else surrounding him, that’s a problem. Grieve and Lieberman attempt to ground the story about fathers and legacies, but even that feels shoehorned in as the story lumbers along to its predictable and inevitable conclusion. 

As one might expect, the voice cast is loaded with talent like Will Arnett, Tony Danza, the scene-stealing Terry Crews as Tentacular, Geraldine Viswanathan, Ben Schwartz and even sports world personalities/athletes like Stephen A. Smith (who very much plays himself), Michael Buffer (yes, he says THE line), Charles Barkley, Becky Lynch, and Roman Reigns.

Video/Audio:

Presentation: 2.39:1 1080p. How does it look? The animation by Reel FX Animation Studios shines in hi-def. 

Audio Track: 5.1 DTS-HD MA. How does it sound? Worry not, the wrestling matches pack a real punch from an audio perspective.

Extras:
* Digital copy
* 5 deleted scenes
* “The Super-Secret Playbook”- A look at the Monster playbook.
* “The Mon-Stars Of Wrestling” showcases the monster wrestler characters
* “Salsa With Rayburn, Jr.”- How Salsa dancing can help your life list.
* “Massive Monsters, Wrestling Moves, And Dazzling Dances”- A featurette on the monster designs and fight and dance choreography.
* “Four Rounds In The Animation Ring”- A brief look at the animation process.

October 6, 2022 - Posted by nicklyons1 | Blu-Ray review | Animated Movie, Giant Monsters, Kaiju, Rumble Blu-ray Review, Wrestling