Chris Marquette (an actor who came close to the big time in the 2000s with Freddy Vs Jason and Fanboys, but sadly hasn’t quite managed to break big thus far) is Corey, a 28-year old who still lives with his mother and works at a deli counter, having singularly failed to do anything significant with his life. He has his reasons, though; his senior year at high school left him a broken man in more ways than one, as his then-girlfriend Sheena (Amanda Crew) left town to pursue a career as a pro-wrestler. Things did not end well between them, Corey didn’t respond to this in the best way, and he’s never quite recovered. However, a decade on Sheena’s not doing too hot herself, after some rather public scandals have seen her brand tainted and her spotlight taken away. Desperate for some good publicity, she agrees to make a personal appearance at the ten year high school reunion – which presents Corey with his first opportunity to see her in all that time. He may hold out hopes that this could rekindle the old spark between them, but is it really going to do anything but open up old wounds?
In truth, Chokeslam’s main problem may be that the more grounded, serious stuff plays far better than everything else, which might be a bit of an issue given this is being sold first and foremost as a comedy about wrestling. Marquette, to his credit, does a good job of getting regularly knocked on his arse, but many of the supporting characters fall into broader, more two-dimensional comedy tropes. For a while, this threatens to be the case with Michael Eklund as Luke; in a bit of 21 Jump Street-esque device, he’s the former popular jock who winds up unexpectedly becoming best friends with the nerdy loser, and a lot of the jokes hinge on his dim-wittedness. However, here too there are some unexpectedly dramatic developments, and the character proves to be a bit more nuanced than first appearances would suggest.
As for the wrestling scenes: again, I’m by no means an authority on the subject, but they strike me as pretty impressive. Crew certainly looks the part of a contemporary female wrestler, and seems more than up to the challenge physically. Still, not all the fight action – particularly that which occurs outside of the ring – is entirely convincing, either in performance or circumstance. This is especially true of the finale, which I can’t help feeling pushes the old suspension of disbelief a little too far.
When all’s said and done, Chokeslam just isn’t funny or gripping enough to make for really arresting viewing. Even so, I should imagine it will prove agreeable enough for both casual viewers and wrestling fans – the latter of whom will doubtless be keen to see it, thanks to a slight but entertaining supporting turn from esteemed WWE veteran Mick Foley.
Chokeslam is released to DVD, Blu-ray, and digital formats in the US on February 27th. Physical media copies can be ordered here.