Have A Little Faith..."The Resurrection Of Gavin Stone"

The Resurrection Of Gavin Stone (2017)

Rated PG

Starring Brett Dalton, Angela Johnson-Reyes, Shawn Michaels, D.B. Sweeney, Neil Flynn,

Directed by Dallas Jenkins

The Story:

Gavin Stone (Dalton) is a former child actor who has one altercation with the police too many. Forced to do community service instead of jail time, he opts to assist a church in his hometown. While working on a strained relationship with his dad (Flynn), he becomes intrigued by Kelly (Johnson-Reyes) who is directing the church's Passion Play. What better community service for an actor than to play the role of a lifetime, and tackle Jesus. The church has one stipulation though, all actors have to be Christians. Easy enough, Gavin is an actor after all, and he'll just wing the whole Christian thing as well.

So I'm sure I've already lost a few people's interests because it's a "Christian movie".

So now, I'll lose the rest of you: It was made by WWE Studios.

How's that for a change of pace from the folks that give us B movie action flicks every few months?

It's a light comedy with a touch of romance as Gavin tries desperately to woo Kelly. What he learns, among many things, is the harder he tries, the more he fails.  It is when he is sincere and honest that Kelly, and most everyone else, really open up to him and like the Gavin Stone that stands before them.

Naturally there needs to be a 3rd Act conflict that threatens everything that has unfolded for Gavin on his journey of redemption.

It comes by way of Hollywood calling him back to the world of network television, and naturally, he needs to be back in Hollywood.

The same weekend.

Is Gavin going to choose Hollywood or the small town?

And is any of his pretending to be a Christian going to sink in and stick?

Dalton does a great job as the former star who has crashed back to Earth hard, and wants nothing more than to recapture the glory of his past. By the end of the movie, you can see the changes that have come over him and it's a sweet story to behold.

Final Grade: B

Adios, Mamacita... R.I.P. Chyna 1970-2016

Woke up yesterday to the news that the "9th Wonder of the World", Chyna, had passed away.

We've lost far too many of WWF/WWE's finest, far too often, and almost always, far too young.

She began her career as the bodyguard for Triple H and was an integral part when he teamed with Shawn Michaels to form DeGeneration X. They were one of the hottest groups at the start of WWE's Attitude Era, and Chyna was there, front and center.

Soon she moved out of her bodyguard role and actually into that of a competitor.

Except Chyna was different, and her running roughshod over the other ladies was rather boring, so she actually was able to wrestle the men.

And she won.

She even won championships.

Sure, there was a bit of novelty to it, but she really was that good in the ring, and was rewarded for her efforts.

She was also teamed with Eddie Guerrero towards the end of her stint in wrestling and "Latino Heat" and his "Mamacita" brought out the best in each other and propelled them both to heights neither had previously enjoyed alone.

Chyna left wrestling shortly after that and has been battling her personal demons ever since. Her relationship with Vince McMahon and Triple H has been contentious over the years, but it seemed like there was a thawing taking place that might someday lead to Chyna being rightfully inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.

Sadly, it seems like that will be easier now that she's not around to screw it up by doing or saying anything else to damage her relationship with the company.

But she was Hall of Fame material and all wrestling fans know it.

Rest easy now, Chyna.

Hopefully Latino Heat was there in his lowrider to pick you up at the pearly gates.

Whatchoo Gonna Do When "The WWE Network" Runs Wild On You, Brother?

First the Marvel Universe comes to the big screen and doesn't suck...

Then a 24/7 WWE network launches...


It's like I found a magic lamp and got three wishes, but I couldn't make any wishes that would solely benefit me, nor could I cure any disease or cause world peace.

So yeah, that sounds about right!

:)

For those that are still reading, the WWE Network launched last Monday.

For 10 bucks a month, they are streaming on your tablets, phones, computers, Playstations, Xboxes...

If you can get a signal, it'll stream!

What are they streaming you ask?

Well for starters, every Pay-Per-View event in the history of the company is online.  I've heard rumors that about less than a handful of events are missing, but I'm sure they'll be added.

In addition, they've added PPV events from WCW and ECW as well.

Plus, they've got past replays of Raw, Smackdown, Main Event, Superstars...

There is the wrestling superstars of tomorrow with NXT.

They have original programming...

There is so much content it will literally blow your mind.

Plus, it works just like a regular channel, you turn it on and there is something already in progress playing.  You have the option to jump in and continue watching, or start over from the beginning.

Or go to the menu and choose from any of the items that I listed above.

The place is interactive and user friendly.

Oh yeah, I failed to mention that subscription to the channel brings each NEW PPV to your home, live when it happens.  That includes the Big Four: Royal Rumble, Wrestlemania, SummerSlam and Survivor Series.  Plus the other 8 that round out the calendar year.

All included in the price of subscription.

So basically, for the price of ordering Royal Rumble and Wrestlemania once each year, you get all of this...

And much...much more.

Kid. Candy store.

I think you can smell what the Rock is cookin'...

The only downside I can see, is there is probably no way that the price remains this low in the future.

I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

Final Grade: A+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Infinitely rewatchable.  I'm in.

Pipe Bomb! "C.M. Punk: The Best in the World"

It's Clobberin' Time!!!


The Story:

This documentary from the WWE follows the rise of C.M. Punk from the ranks of backyard wrestling to star of the Indy Circuit.  From there, it was only a matter of time until the WWE called, and eventually they did.  But after he arrived, he was never given the accolades and position that he, and many others, felt that Punk deserved. 

Next stop: Best. In. The. World.

I would have to say that this may be the most intriguing of the documentaries on WWE's top stars that they've ever produced.  Unprecedented access/use of Punk's material before coming to the WWE showed why he was the hot commodity of the Indie circuit.

And yet, talk about allowing the dog to bite the hand that feeds him...

They do not shy away from Punk's animosity towards the WWE corporate machine.

Punk has been allowed to be at the top of the game, but never to be the face of the company.  It can never happen as long as Cena is still around.

Yet somehow, Punk finds a way.

All the while, he brings out the best in all of his opponents, and himself as well.

I would have to say that he is this generation's Shawn Michaels.

The little guy that shouldn't... but does.

He doesn't need the belt to show you how great he is.

Highly worth watching.

And yes, if you've made it this far, I still enjoy watching wrestling... I know it's "fake", but these athletes are nothing short of entertaining.  Put it another way, I drop something on my toe, it hurts.  Getting hit with a chair, forget it....

: )


The documentary portion is available for streaming on Netflix as of this writing.

Final Grade: A

Would I Own It: Yep, if not for myself, I'll definitely get it for my son, a die-hard Punk fan.  Infinitely rewatchable, and can't wait to see the matches that they picked to go with the documentary.