Ready to Rumble (2000)

25% of critics liked it
(65 reviews)
48% of users liked it
(32,825 ratings)

A pair of sewage-truck drivers attempt to rescue the tarnished reputation of their favorite pro wrestler in this comedy from Varsity Blues director Brian Robbins. Gordie Boggs (David Arquette) and Sean Dawkins (Scott Caan) live vicariously through superstar grappler Jimmy King (Oliver Platt). But… More A pair of sewage-truck drivers attempt to rescue the tarnished reputation of their favorite pro wrestler in this comedy from Varsity Blues director Brian Robbins. Gordie Boggs (David Arquette) and Sean Dawkins (Scott Caan) live vicariously through superstar grappler Jimmy King (Oliver Platt). But when King's manager (Joe Pantoliano), in a fit of ego, arranges to have his client dethroned to make way for the next hot property, the guys hatch a plan to force a rematch. The only problem is, their no-good hero has sunk into a black hole of self-pity and liquor. Enlisting the help of old-time trainer Sal (Martin Landau) to whip "The King" into shape, Gordie and Sean run afoul of Gordie's father, who wants his son to settle down and become a cop like him. Meanwhile, curvaceous Sasha (Rose McGowan) moves in on Gordie, but has ulterior motives. So does The King's son (Tait Smith), who's willing to put his girth to good use in order to exact revenge on his dad for abandoning him. Ready to Rumble features a large cast of real-life WCW wrestlers portraying themselves. McGowan and Arquette previously appeared together in Wes Craven's Scream. Lewis Arquette, the star's father, also appears alongside his son as he did in Scream 2. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG-13, 1 hr. 46 min.
Directed By: Brian Robbins
Written By: Steven Brill
Genres: Action & Adventure, Comedy

In Theaters: Apr 7, 2000 Wide
On DVD: Oct 2, 2001
Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures

Critic Reviews

Loren King, Boston Globe
Likable performances from its young cast and a better-than-average script add spark to this formulaic fairy tale and make the wrestling mania watchable.
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly
Moronic and insulting.
Lou Lumenick, New York Post
Toilet-humor farce proud of its own crudeness.
Susan Stark, Detroit News
Ready to Rumble manages to insult not only pro wrestlers but also their fans.
Tom Keogh, Film.com
Comic virtues linger in the memory a little longer than the farcical brutality of this pandering noisefest. Not that that's a significant victory.
A.O. Scott, New York Times
Ready to Rumble is not much fun at all.
Nell Minow, Common Sense Media
PG-13 movie has a lot of R-type material.
Frank Swietek, One Guy's Opinion
A movie made by yahoos for yahoos...the cinematic equivalent of a body-slam in which the viewer is on the receiving end.
Jeffrey Westhoff, Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)
Features a shameless cross-promotion we had better get used to in this era of media conglomerates. The script could be mistaken for the portfolio of the Time-Warner empire.
Brent Simon, Entertainment Today
Fans of ***- and feces-based humor will be rolling in the sticky, sticky aisles. Others may be only slightly amused.
Chuck Rudolph, Matinee Magazine
It's less about being good and more about existing to suck dollars out of wallets.
Dave Kehr, Citysearch
There's not much here for those with ages (or probably IQs) in the double digits.

Read all 12 critic reviews

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

Bobby H

Being a wrestling fan it's hard not to like this movie. It has some of the dumbest dialogue that I have ever heard or seen in a movie - yet it's funny and fun to watch. I would tell any wrestling fan to watch this movie. If your not a wrestling fan - you may find it… More
Being a wrestling fan it's hard not to like this movie. It has some of the dumbest dialogue that I have ever heard or seen in a movie - yet it's funny and fun to watch. I would tell any wrestling fan to watch this movie. If your not a wrestling fan - you may find it pointless, but for me, it was golden.
danny d

wierd and stupid but has some funny lines
Joseph E

Oh, I still know who consider ready to Rumble to be a big time flop, but i still recognize it as an underground, cult classic. it isn't always funny, but It's ending, and Wrestling scenes are very entertaining. This film was average in it's humor, but I still enjoyed… More
Oh, I still know who consider ready to Rumble to be a big time flop, but i still recognize it as an underground, cult classic. it isn't always funny, but It's ending, and Wrestling scenes are very entertaining. This film was average in it's humor, but I still enjoyed more than I thought. Most hated the Unfunny jokes, and stupid plot points, but everything else is pretty good. It is worth a watch atleast if you like Wrestling, Or Comedies.
Yinalí R

Entertaining at home.
Curt C

Was somewhat entertaining if you were also watching WCW in 2000. Well, it's not 2000, and WCW is dead.
Jason R

This is a glimpse back when Pro Wrestling was actually good, sadly right around this time the greatness that was WCW was on it's last leg. Seeing Goldberg, Sid Vicious, Macho Man, and Sting all in their prime was a great thing. As for the movie itself a good buddy comedy with… More
This is a glimpse back when Pro Wrestling was actually good, sadly right around this time the greatness that was WCW was on it's last leg. Seeing Goldberg, Sid Vicious, Macho Man, and Sting all in their prime was a great thing. As for the movie itself a good buddy comedy with great laughs mostly from the very funny Oliver Platt, aka "The King" baby! Also after seeing Rose McGowan she just seems to be getting hotter and hotter over the years, but she is at one of her sexiest moments in this movie. All in all good comedy with great moments most notably the scene with Arquette and Zappa when he sticks his finger up his ass trying to get a free refill.
Lee K

aside from the odd wrestler cameo this flick is garbage
Chosen 7

Very Entertaining, fun to watch as a fan of wrestling.
Patrick D

Not Horrible. Seeing Oliver Platt as a wrestler is funny.

Read all 9 featured audience ratings

Cast

            David Arquette as Gordie Boggs

            Oliver Platt as Jimmy King

            Scott Caan as Sean Dawkins

            Bill Goldberg as Goldberg

            Rose McGowan as Sasha

            Diamond Dallas Page as "Diamond" Dallas Page

            Richard Lineback as Mr. Boggs

            Chris Owen as Isaac

            Sting as Sting

            Joe Pantoliano as Titus Sinclair

            Martin Landau as Sal

            Caroline Rhea
            
            Tait Smith
            
            Ellen Albertini Dow
            
            Kathleen Freeman
            
            Lewis Arquette
            
            Scott 'Bam Bam' Bigelow
            
            Saturn V
            
            Sid Vicious
            
            Billy Kidman
            
            Rey Mysterio
            
            Disco Inferno
            
            Juventud Guerrera
            
            Curt Hennig
            
            Konnan
            
            Steve Borden
            
            Dallas Page
            
            Steve "sting" Borden
            
            Jill Ritchie
            
            Page Falkinburg
            
            Rose Mc Gowan
            
See full cast

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