If you are a fan of wrestling, especially wrestling circuits that are small and are continually growing, “The Booker” is a documentary that shows the hardships in the wrestling business but also one man’s persistence of taking an idea and making it a reality and just doing all he can to make it happen!
© 2012 INDIEPIX. All rights reserved.
DVD TITLE: The Booker
DATE OF FILM RELEASE: 2011
DURATION: 96 Minutes
DVD INFORMATION:Â Documentary, Black & White, Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
COMPANY: INDIEPIX
RATED: NOT RATED
RELEASE DATE: December 10, 2013
Directed by Michael Perkins
Cinematography by Rod Fiore, Alexander Williams, Michael Perkins
Associate Producers: Katherine Skinner, Huckleberry Starnes, Stosh Kozlowski
Edited by Alexander Williams
Starring:
Steve Scarborough
Logan Mason
James Card
Tara Young
Stephen Vereen
Steve Scarborough doesn’t like what’s happened to professional wrestling, so he’s set about changing it, one match at a time. The Booker follows Steve as he takes Platinum Championship Wrestling from idea to reality. Shot over the course of 4 years, watch his wrestling school grow into a wrestling promotion, from working in the back room of a theater with 4 students to holding a show at a 2,500-seat area. See how far Steve will go to be a successful booker and save pro wrestling from itself.
For former wrestler, Steve “Platinum” Scarborough, having seen wrestling turn to more of a stunt show, wants to bring back professional wrestling by creating his own wrestling company known as Platinum Championship Wrestling.
Filmed over the course of 4 years, we watch how Steve Scarborough goes from having a wrestling school and grow into a wrestling promotion.
From his days of working the back room of a theater space with four students and growing PCW of a show at a 2,500 arena.
This is one man’s journey of creating a wrestling promotion by leasing space and slowly growing the business in Georgia. From business relationships that were lost, to making things go right and disciplining wrestlers and referees in order to make for a better show.
As filmmaker Michael Perkins captures the life of Steve Scarborough within four years, will we see Platinum Championship Wrestling succeed or will his show fail?
VIDEO & AUDIO:
Contrary to the DVD cover saying the film is in color,”The Booker” is a documentary presented in black and white and is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo.
Picture quality is good as what one can expect on DVD, but shot in black and white, it’s probably a good decision by the filmmaker and editor to go black and white as it doesn’t make the film looked aged. Especially with the older wrestling footage included.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
“The Booker” comes with a theatrical trailer.
As a fan of wrestling and having grown up watching wrestling on television, even ’til now.
But after watching “The Booker”, you have to admire Steve Scarborough for what he has accomplished for Platinum Championship Wrestling.
I was raised on watching the old wrestling from the ’70s and ’80s and as these shows became more entertainment driven, at least from the ’90s to the early ‘2000s, there was something to be excited for. There were wrestlers who you followed because they were a great presence but they went further by doing stunts that can literally end their career (Mick Foley anyone?).
But today’s wrestling has evolved into a big business. A business that is targeting families, children and for the most part, the landscape of wrestling entertainment is somewhat disheartening for fans who grew up watching wrestling back in the day.
But to make a credible run of bringing competition and athleticism to wrestling fans via a new promotion is not always easy and for Michael Perkins’ documentary “The Booker”, this documentary shot in a span of four years chronicling Steve Scarborough’s wrestling idea to a newer and bigger level is quite fascinating and also respectable.
This is a man who has not strayed away from his plan to make PCW a growing business but he also knows that he needs to make money, he needs to trust his wrestlers on putting a good show but sometimes things don’t go as perfectly on a show and we can see Steve Scarborough losing patience with certain wrestlers and refs and giving the important lecture for those not to screw up and how to fix the problem.
While the film does cover Steve Scarborough’s ideas and the growth of his company, too bad that the cameras didn’t stay with him for another year or two as people would get to see the synergy created with the PCW/EMPIRE matchups. The fact is that Scarborough’s idea and has grown to become something bigger and who knows how far he will be able to take it.
But as one can look at “The Booker” as one man’s journey to create and build “Pacific Championship Wrestling”, I also look at it as one man pursuing a career that he was born to do and capturing those intimate moments behind-the-scenes of PCW and how it can take a toll on Scarborough as a businessman, a promoter and also a man who wears several hats for this company.
The DVD is presented in black and white (not color as the cover mentions on the back), dialogue is clear and understandable and for the most part, the DVD looks good in black and white and as for special features, there is only a theatrical trailer. It would have been nice if there were special features included. More behind-the-scenes footage, deleted scenes or perhaps even a followup of what is happening with the PCW.
Overall, if you are a fan of wrestling, especially wrestling circuits that are small and are continually growing, “The Booker” is a documentary that shows the hardships in the wrestling business but also one man’s persistence of taking an idea and making it a reality and just doing all he can to make it happen!
