Trade, The

This is the sequel I've been waiting for years to see. The story of "Sick" Nick Mondo reads like something out of the comic books. With the physical, mental, and emotional toll equaling only things you read, not see. Starting with his first documentary "Unscarred", real life man Matthew T. Burns begins to peel back the layers of one of the most intriguing characters ever created. In any form of entertainment. It just so happens his form is professional wrestling. As you watch things unfold you will constantly question, can a man really absorb this much punishment and survive. By the end your left questioning. Now over a decade later the question finally gets answered. "The Trade" is that answer. Watch as the man and his creation battle over old wounds and new tragedies all told through wonderful storytelling and cinematography that rivals any superhero movie you can think of. Those who take this journey will undoubtably come away asking questions of themselves and what they think of the world around them and how far you can go when you believe in something greater than yourself.

As a wrestling fan it brought me to near tears as much as I didn't want to come in touch with those emotions. I always believed that Sick Nick Mondo's character was his reaction to the pro wrestling business. As in survival of the fittest - meaning you brought your level of violence to survive. The movie answers more unanswered questions than his original documentary. I obviously highly recommend THE TRADE. Still I have to watch it again to see if he walked into the wrestling business wanting to be Sick Nick Mondo or if his character was his overall Reaction to the pro wrestling business. The business brought that violence out of him in order to survive? Or is it both things meeting in the middle? Fire with fire? It took a lot of guts to face his demons in order to make this movie. You are right you cannot just write off the story by saying "oh he is crazy." This story as well as others needs to be seen! Awesome movie. Engaging. I will watch it again.

As someone who is not a wrestling fan, I started watching with curiosity, wondering if I would understand and relate to Nick’s story. While the film has a lot of footage that I can see would appeal to a fan of Mondo and of wrestling in general, I was able to view it and was touched by his journey. The film describes his formative years in his own words and what drove him to pursue wrestling- how his obsessive personality and constant desire to push the envelope combined with his own guilt to create something that was a catalyst for his own self-destructive tendencies... but how despite all that darkness he was able to be a voice for others and inspire them. I was gripped by the ebb and flow of the battle between his conscience and ambition. My expectations were exceeded and I left seeing the world of wrestling with new eyes. My judgment was that it was a world without depth. Nick takes his larger-than-life persona and exposes not only his own humanness, but the inner-workings of his heroes and admirers.

I am not a fan of wrestling, but I was quite surprised by this video. It is a bit show-man-ship, given the story telling elements, but it drive one key point home, in a hip, if not teenager accepted way, that wrestling is dangerous and exacts a high toll on both mind and body. This is not to say this is an anti-professional-wrestling effort, in fact, it is a sane discourse on professional wrestling, that exposes the side that many fans never see. This documentary, in my humble opinion, is first and foremost a cautionary tale, for those that see the hype and thrills, no the pain and suffering. If anyone has a loved one that is considering professional wrestling as a career or vocation? They should watch this film. Not to discourage, no promote, but show the reality of the industry, from the perspective of a professional wrestler that has walked the path. The wisdom he gained, should be shared, which I think is the true intent of this production.

I'm a lifelong wrestling fan who hates deathmatch wrestling. I was familiar with Nick Mondo peripherally, but heard him on Colt Cabana's podcast and was impressed how articulate and thoughtful he was. Being a fan of both wrestling and documentaries in general, I thought I'd give this a try, and I wasn't disappointed. Part traditional doc, part art school film experiment, this movie isn't always successful, but it is ambitious, and that alone makes it better than most wrestling docs. Mondo tries to get inside his own head, and the heads of the people that wrestle deathmatches, and though the film provides scant answers or much in the way of insight (it still seems pretty stupid to me), he does manage to coax some artful and interesting moments from his own story. I came away respecting his effort, and impressed by his skill as a fledgling filmmaker. Definitely worth checking out and supporting if you love wrestling, and want to support one of the more interesting people involved in it.

Great capstone to an insane career! I became aware of the American deathmatch style of wrestling after Mondo's career ended, but I still remember going back through a lot of his stuff in the SMV catalog,watching his BYW documentary and his shoot interview from SMV and just generally enjoying his work. This is an excellent way to show the transition of his passage from ultraviolent deathmatch wrestler to artistic filmmaker. It is at once surreal and gritty enough to grab and hang on to a viewer. Great show!