One trait shared by the greatest pro wrestlers that isn’t discussed or praised often enough is their ability to act. Yes, a wrestler must be athletic, acrobatic, knowledgeable about holds and counter-moves, and physically tough (and must look incredible and fit to boot). On top of all this, a wrestler must be able to tell a believable story — to manipulate the viewers’ emotions — using facial expressions and gestures. He must be able to authentically express excruciating pain, joy, cockiness, jealousy, hatred, cowardly fear, etc. He must be both a talented athlete and an Oscar-worthy thespian, a very difficult and impressive combination of skills.
Here is a match between Zack Ryder and Drew McIntyre that demonstrates how a talented wrestler can use facial expressions and acting skills tell the story. Even without viewing the wrestling holds in this match, we can easily figure out who is on top, how they’re feeling, how the match has affected them, just by looking at these close-up photos of their faces (which are plentiful and beautiful thanks to great camera work by the WWE staff).
Check out the impressive range of expressions and emotions both men are able to portray in just a few short minutes, quickly shifting their attitudes and appearances like chameleons. They take us on a roller-coaster ride of emotions and narrate the story of their battle — their rising and falling fortunes — using nothing but high-quality acting.
One enjoyable feature of modern-day televised wrestling is the facial close-up — the ultra-zoomed-in view into the man’s very soul every time the action slows down for a moment. I swear they must have two cameras that are permanently focused on both wrestlers’ faces the entire match, so they’re sure to capture every dramatic expression and intense feeling, delivering for the viewer a powerful, believable, and heart-wrenching experience thanks to the authenticity of the in-ring acting.
The camera definitely loves both Zack Ryder and Drew McIntyre, frequently zooming in on their eyes, their mouths, their expressive faces. The technology of High-Def television now allows for a very clear picture — so you can see every drop of sweat on their brows, the tension in their jaw muscles, every tousled hair, further adding to the emotional impact of the battle.
Acting is usually considered an “interpretive” (rather than “creative”) art form because your job as an actor is to portray (to interpret) the words or actions spelled out by another person — the writer. Because of this, Marlon Brando (one of the greatest actors of all time) said that acting is not a noble profession for a man. Instead of creating something — the purpose and function of a man — an actor dresses up, pretends to be someone else, and acts out their emotions, a very womanly activity.
The beauty of pro wrestling is that it is both a creative and interpretive art form. The wrestlers create the sequence of moves, execute the holds, dream up the narrative structure of the match, while at the same time, portraying the outcomes determined by the Bookers and exhibiting the emotions called for by the battle.
As you can probably discern from these face photos, the match begins with Zack Ryder — a fun-loving, smiley, and lovable stooge — suffering a painful beating from the intense, angry Drew McIntyre with the burning, hateful eyes. McIntyre is apparently the Heel. But as the match wears on, Ryder gains the upper hand, brutally punishing the long-haired Irishman outside the ring and striking arrogant, mocking poses.
Ryder morphs into a Heel before our eyes, no longer worthy of our compassion and sympathy mid-match because of his arrogance. Suddenly poor misunderstood McIntyre, with his worried eyes and disheveled hair, becomes the object of our pity, forced to endure Ryder’s painful abuse and cocky trash-talk. Who wouldn’t feel something for McIntyre upon seeing those sad eyes and that furrowed brow.
In the end, Ryder wins the match and celebrates to the point of being annoying, screaming his “Woooh WOOOHH Wooohhhh” catch-phrase and gloating over the beaten and humiliated hero. What a prick (and poor McIntyre!) You’re seeing a talented pair of wrestlers who can switch so easily and believeably from Baby-Face to Heel, who can manipulate the fans into loving or hating, who can switch from good to evil (or vice versa) right in the middle of the action!
