Micitype Pretty Good

Fairaher The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Portia Hilton Blistering performances.

Marva It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

bh_tafe3 This was the first Wrestlemania to be shown on PPV as the first, in 1985, was shown on Closed Circuit Television. The Gimmick here is that we're coming to you from three different cities, New York, Chicago and Los Angeles in a coast to coast spectacular! This seemed like a great show at the time it happened and is still good fun now.The action starts off in New York with Paul Orndorff and Don Maruco fighting to a double count out draw. They do some nice stuff and the match ends after about 4 minutes. The second match on the card features the first Wrestlemania appearance for Macho Man Randy Savage, one of the great wrestlers of the late 80s and 90s. He's here putting the Intercontinental Title on the line against George "The Animal" Steele. Steele has his chances, but for most of the fight is too busy ogling over Savage's sidekick Miss Elizabeth. Savage rolls up Steele and puts his feet on the ropes to get the pin. Dastardly.Next up is he short match between Jake Roberts and George Wells. Roberts wins in short order with the DDT and gets his pet snake "damien" to slither all over the unfortunate Mr Wells. The main event for the New York section of the show is a boxing match between Mr T and Roddy Piper. This one ends in the fourth round with Piper disqualified for body slamming Mr T. I pity that fool.Things now move to Chicago where we kick things off with the Fabulous Moolah defeating Velvet McIntyre to retain the WWE Women's Championship. McIntyre looked a good thing to win the fight for most of the going, but the veteran Moolah pulled out the win with some nice evasion and a quick pinning combination. Next up was a flag match between Corporal Kirschner and Nikolai Volkoff who was accompanied by Freddy Blassie. Blassie tries to throw his cane to Volkoff, but Kirschner intercepts it, knocking out Volkoff and winning the match.The next match was the NFL Superstars vs WWE Superstars. I'll be honest as an Australian and say I have no idea who any of the NFL guys were. It doesn't matter anyway as the 20 man battle Royal comes down to Andre the Giant vs the Hart Foundation. Andre wins after eliminating first Neidhart than Bret Hart. The main event for the Chicago part of the show is the British Bulldogs (Davey Boy Smith and the Dynamite Kid) defeating the Dream Team (Brutus Beefcake and Greg Valentine) to win the Tag Team Championships. Plenty of shenanigans here, with head butts and ref bumps. From a technical standpoint this was the match of the night.Wrestlemania 2 now switches scenery to beautiful Los Angeles, and we kick things off with Ricky Steamboat getting an upset win over Hercules. Steamboat jumps around a bit, Hercules beats on him, goes for a splash, misses, Steamboat pulls out the win. Next up we had Adrian Adonis accompanied by Jimmy Hart defeating Uncle Elmer. Short match, don't know what the story was going in. Crowd seemed to like it. This is followed by Hoss and Terry Funk defeating the Junk Yard Dog and Tito Santana with help from Jimmy Hart's microphone.The main event in Los Angeles, and for the show is Hulk Hogan defeating King Kong Bundy in a steel cage match to retain the WWE Title. Some people rate this the worst match ever, but they really need to get over it. Fun match, crowd was into it. Good triumphs over evil. The only thing I will say bad about it is the awful female commentary throughout the event.An interesting experiment which didn't quite work for the WWE and was never tried again.

BobbyUK Here are the matches...Nassau Colloseum Paul Orndorff v Don Muraco: A relatively fast-paced match (which features a tasteless slanted eye gesture made by Orndorff against Mr Fuji) that ends with an unsatisfying double count-out. A shame because this could have been the sleeper of the night. I am sure I could hear the fans shout 'bullsh*t' after the match... 3/10 George 'The Animal' Steele v 'Machoman' Randy Savage for the Intercontinental title: This was an oddity and mainly a match of entertainment and hijinks than wrestling in itself. On a rare occasion, 'Machoman' messes up a flying body-cross and Steele actually kicks out of the flying elbow. It ended with 'Machoman' getting the cheap pin with feet on the ropes manoeuvre. 4/10 George Wells v Jake 'The Snake' Roberts: Jake gets dominated by 'jobber to the stars' Wells until he lands the DDT. Jake drops the snake over Wells (rather unconvincingly) but Wells sells the idea well by frothing at the mouth. 2/10 How many times does Susan Saint James say 'C'maaaan George' during the night? Lol.Mr T v 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper boxing match: This boxing match didn't go anywhere near the distance. Both combatants knocked each other out during rounds 2 and 3 and Piper got disqualified in round 4 for executing a body-slam. A waste of time really and the only real factor of this match was it started a face turn for Piper as the crowd realised he was more interesting than Mr T. 3/10 Rosemont Horizon Velvet McEntyre v Fabulous Moolah for the women's title: A blink and you'll miss it squash match which devalues the women's title. Moolah pinned McEntyre after a failed body-press within 2 minutes. I've read recently that McEntyre's match was cut short because she had a wardrobe malfunction. You can see McEntyre doing her best to protect her modesty during and after the match. 1/10Corporal Kirschner v Nikolai Volkoff - flag match: A mercifully short two minute spectacle giving enough time for Kirschner to catch Blassie's cane in the air meant for Volkoff and whack him with it to gain the pin. Kirschner still manages to bust his head open in the process. I can only guess this was the WWF's way of dealing with 'The Cold War'. 2/10 WWF/NFL battle royal: A decent 20 man event but not much time was devoted to it. If you notice hard enough you will find Bruno Sammartino barely does anything in the ring but wander around and 'Hillbilly' Jim tries too hard to get himself eliminated while John Studd falls for a rookie mistake. Andre the Giant won the match defeating both members of the Hart Foundation (sporting blue tights). 6/10 British Bulldogs v Dream Team for the WWF tag titles: This is definitely match of the night. Well fought though the majority of it sees Greg Valentine getting a beating. Ozzie Osbourne joins The Bulldogs (probably WWF still attempting the Rock 'n' Wrestling connection) and Gene Okerlund refers to Osbourne coming from Manchester when he actually comes from Birmingham. Anyhow, that aside, a good match which finishes when a dazed Hammer clashes with the Dynamite Kid and gets pinned. 6/10 Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena Ricky Steamboat v Hercules Hernandez: A match notable for Hercules's ring costume at the start, portraying a Greek soldier and looking like the late 'Bruiser' Brody. Steamboat carries Hercules to a reasonable match (Hercules actually attempts the top-rope at one point) but the conclusion was never left in any doubt when Steamboat flying body-presses for the pin. 5/10 Uncle Elmer v Adrian Adonis: Adonis comes to the ring in a dress and wearing gaudy make-up. Before Wrestlemania 2 Adonis 'came out' as a homosexual (even though he was a happily married man in real life) so I can only presume the WWF equated homosexuality with transvestitism. I laughed at Elmer falling over after delivering a blow to Adonis and Adonis entertained with his bumping before he got the quick pin over Elmer after a flying head-butt. A favourite of mine but not a good match by any means. 3/10 JYD and Tito Santana v Terry and Dory 'Hoss' Funk Jnr: It's nice to see Terry Funk looking more healthier than he does these days. A pretty good match with Terry doing some nice bumping (he gets slammed on to a table at one point). The action was marred by a cheap foreign object ending as Terry pinned JYD after hitting him with Jimmy Hart's megaphone. 6/10 Hulk Hogan v King Kong Bundy steel cage match for the WWF world title: One of those rare cage matches that featured during the 80s where blue steel replaced the usual meshed cage. The match was predictable in it's outcome but a pretty tough outing for the two. At one stage Bundy removes the bandage from Hogan's injured ribs and proceeds to choke him with it and Bundy leaves the match with blood on his face. Hogan goes over the top of the cage to win the match. 6/10A lot of people really dislike this Wrestlemania and often rate it as their worst but it does have a few decent matches. I guess most of the criticism levelled at Wrestlemania II was the PPV structure set in 3 arenas and how much the show has dated because of it's comparatively limited production values and minor celebrity overload. Advert moguls Wendy's 'Where's the beef?' Clara Peller yells into the air while Burger King's Herb dances like a pillock when they get introduced. The pecularities in certain matches (George 'The Animal' Steele vs 'Machoman' Randy Savage and Uncle Elmer vs 'Adorable' Adonis) are interesting too showing the idiosyncrasies and attitudes in wrestling haven't really changed much over the years.

Spawn Devil Match 1: Paul Orndorff and Don Muraco wrestled to a double-countout Match 2: Randy "Macho Man" Savage defeated George " the Animal" Steele Match 3: Jake "the Snake" Roberts defeated George Wells via pinfall Match 4: Mr. T defeated Roddy Piper by DQ in a boxing match Match 5: Women's Champion Fabulous Moolah defeated Velvet McIntyre Match 6: Cpl. Kirschner defeated Nikolai Volkoff via pinfall Match 7: Andre the Giant won a 20 man battle royal Match 8: British Bulldogs defeated Greg Valentine & Brutus Beefcake for the Tag Team Championship Match 9: Ricky Steamboat defeated Hercules via pinfall Match 10: Adrian Adonis defeated Uncle Elmer via pinfall Match 11: Hoss & Terry Funk defeated Junk Yard Dog and Tito Santana Match 12: WWE Champion Hulk Hogan defeated King Kong Bundy in a cage match Overall Mark: B+

Steve Dorsett This was the tag line for the second Wrestlemania, the first Wrestlemania to be a Pay-Per-View Event. The WWF had to come up with a way to top the original Mania. To achieve this the event was split between arenas in 3 cities; The Nassau Coliseum, New York, The Rosemont Horizon, Chicago and the Los Angeles Sports Arena. Each arena held 4 matches and the arenas could link up with live satellite feeds.NEW YORKWe have Vince McMahon and Susan St. James (who?) on commentary so off we go.The Magnificent Muraco vs Paul "Mr Wonderful" OrndorffTwo big fellas in here. This match should be better than it is. Muraco works through a few power routines, Orndorff displays some of his technical work, but it doesn't seem to gel right. Crap finish as well. I expect more from the opening of WrestlemaniaIntercontinental Title Match: The Macho Man Randy Savage (Champion) with Miss Elizabeth vs George "The Animal" SteeleAll f***ing right, the Wrestlemania debut of one of my favourite wrestlers of all time. Savage in my opinion is pure wrestling class, heel or face, doesn't matter to me, the man always puts on a show. Comes to the WWF, very quickly becomes IC champion. Anyway, back to the match. The styles of these two men don't gel too well although Savage tries to carry Animal. Not a bad match, but I am shocked and deeply annoyed that Steele felt he had the right to kick out of the elbow. Watch it, you'll see what I mean.Jake "The Snake" Roberts vs George WellsHmmm, brand new heel with a killer gimmick vs some random jobber picked up on the corner of "jabroni drive" and "know your role boulevard". Can't think how this will turn out. Holy crap, the jobber is controlling the whole match, oh no, DDT all over. Next...10 Round Boxing Match: Rowdy Roddy Piper vs Mr TTwo of the main eventers from the previous years Wrestlemania, now slug it out to close the New York segment. This is a hard match to rate as it is so atypical. A lot of people don't like this match but I find Piper hilarious, especially in heel mode so I quite like this one. Pipers flagrant cheating is very funny and T's efforts to play it straight is damn admirable.CHICAGONow on commentary we have Gorilla Monsoon, Mean Gene Okerlund and Cathy Lee CrosbyWomen's Title Match: The Fabulous Moolah (Champion) vs Velvet McIntyreOld Moolah, old old old Moolah. This is awful. Velvet, who was actually a pretty damn good wrestler gets squashed by the old lard ass herself. Very quick, very poor. Next...Flag Match: Corporal Kirschner vs Nikolai VolkoffOkay good all american, albeit Sgt Slaughter rip-off, Corporal Kirshner vs evil russian Nikolai. The WWF's answer to the cold war, a flag match. The idea being that each man enters with his country's flag and the winner leaves with both. Sounds pointless? Yes it is. Another daft and pointless match. This Chicago segment doesn't appear to be shaping up to much. Oh hang on the next two matches whup ass.20-Man WWF/NFL Battle RoyalGuest Referees: Dick Butkus & Ed "Too Tall" JonesGuest Timekeeper: Claire KellerThis battle royal contained WWF superstars as well players and legends from the NFL. The participants are as follows:NFL: Jimbo Covert, Ted Arcidi, Harvey Martin, Ernie Holmes, Bill Fralic, Russ Francis, "Refridgerator" William PerryWWF: Pedro Morales, Tony Atlas, Dan Spivey, Hillbilly Jim, King Tonga, The Iron Sheik, The Killer Bees, Big John Studd, The Hart Foundation, Bruno Sammartino, Andre the GiantWell this is pretty good fun, most battle royals are. You get a chance to see the future of wrestling in Bret "Hitman" Hart involved as quite a major player here. If you take a look at the participants you can pretty much guess who's going to win this. Good fun none the less.Tag Team Title Match: The Dream Team (Champions) with Johnny Valiant vs The British Bulldogs with Captain Lou Albano and Ozzy OsbourneOh yes the Bulldogs are here. In my honest opinion, one of the greatest tag teams ever, and no not just because they're british. Seriously, Davey Boy Smith and The Dynamite Kid were ahead of their time, pulling out moves you only previously saw in Mexico or Japan. This match is absolutely brilliant, I never thought I'd say that about a match with Beefcake and Valentine in, yet here it works. Best match of the night bar none, fabulous performance, great story to the match, superb shock ending. They don't get any better than this.LOS ANGELESOkay, now on commentary we have Jesse "The Body" Ventura (yay), Lord Alfred Hayes (boo) and Elvira (god how I used to lust after this woman (still do)).Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat vs Hercules HernandezI like both these guys, but this match just didn't do it for me. I don't think their styles complimented each other particularly well. Not bad, not great, just decidedly average. Anyway I think I'll skip on now.Uncle Elmer vs Adorable Adrian Adonis with Jimmy HartYuk, yuk, yuk, yuk, yuk. Two fat men, one dressed as a hillbilly and one in a dress gut-barging each other. In my opinion, worst match on the card. Next...Tito Santana & The Junkyard Dog vs The Funk BrothersThis is more like it. Tito flying about all over the place, JYD smashing Funks through tables, the funks taking some superb bumps. This one is great fun. I love watching Terry Funk, because you know the guy's going to do some crazy shit to his body, in this case a big back drop on to the cement floor. This match is fast paced, the styles compliment each other quite well and this is the most entertained I've ever been by the JYD. All in all, top stuff.Steel Cage WWF Title Match: Hulk Hogan (Champion) vs King Kong Bundy with Bobby "The Brain" HeenanGuest Ring Announcer: Tommy LasordaGuest Referee: Robert ConradGuest Timekeeper: Ricky SchroederOkay main event time. Hogan in a cage that's pretty unusual. Here we see the start of the trend of having Hogan face guys even bigger than he is, other examples being Andre and Earthquake. This isn't a bad match, not great as cage matches aren't really suited for massive guys. Still some good action, a damn good story, bit of blood, Heenan receives a slap which is always good fun. Problem is, there's never a question of who's going to win. Ah well, can't have everything.And so ends Wrestlemania 2, not as good as the first, but still worth a look. Especially for the introduction of Savage and Jake, and that damn fine Bulldogs Match. Anyway signing off for now, be back with a write up of Wrestlemania 3 sometime soon.