Post by Hulkamaniac on Nov 9, 2007 21:25:32 GMT -5
Here is my long promised review of Hitman : My real life in the cartoon world of Pro Wrestling - by Bret Hart. (A copy of which I have on sell on Ebay. Apologies for the shameless plug).
The one word that best describes Bret in this book is bitter. The second word is egomaniac. He doesn't come off as having nearly as big an ego as Shawn does in his book (Shawn spent about 80% of his book talking about how great he is and how people hated him for being so damn good), but you can definitely see it. He spends a lot of the book talking about how he is so much better than Hogan or Warrior. His bitterness shows through in so many places in the book it's impossible to recount.
The thing I found the strangest is how he refers to his dad by his first name for the entire book. I'm just not accustomed to anyone referring to their father by their first name, but he does make comments like, "I was excited because Stu and Helen were going to be ringside to watch me wrestle." It's something that makes the book disconcerting to read in parts. I find it very strange to say the least. I also confess that I had no idea the different members of the Hart family hated each other so much.
Still, after all that there are some really great stories in the book. My favorite was how, because of kayfabe, Dibiase flew first class, stayed in 4 and 5 star hotels and was chauffeured around by limo. The other guys were stuck in coach where some of the bigger guys couldn't fit in the seats. A prominent character in his book is the Dynamite Kid who he doesn't always say the most flattering things about and who he now hates because of some things Dynamite said in his book (side note - I read Dynamite's book and didn't see anything in there that's any more disparaging to the Hart's than what Bret wrote). You also find out about the many, many affairs Bret had while on the road which, he says, he feels God gave him permission for because he wasn't using drugs the way the other wrestlers were and he needed his stress relief.
He says some interesting things about the Screwjob, but doesn't focus on it nearly as much as HBK does in his book. Shawn is portrayed in the book as a whiny, cry baby who can often be found weeping in the corner. He states that Montreal was "the day wrestling died." I found that a little bit over dramatic, but whatever.
Some of the things he says about the other wrestlers are surprising to say the least. He claims that Flair has no psychology at all and just calls for random spots in the ring. He also says that Shawn is not nearly as good a wrestler as he is and is limited in what he can do in the ring. Surprisingly, he gives Hogan props for what he did for the industry and says that Hogan deserved to be on top despite the fact that he wasn't a good worker. He acknowledges that Hogan was charismatic and could draw and therefore deserved his spot. It's a view you don't see from a lot of autobiographies.
There is very little or nothing about his reconciliation with Vince and nothing at all is mentioned about Benoit's death (other than that he is dead). The book seems to stop at the time he had his stroke and got out of the hospital. Not much is told about what Bret does with his time today and his plans for the future.
Is the book worth reading? Yes, I think it is. It is long (almost 600 pages), but I think it's well worth the read. I'm not a Bret Hart fan. I always found him solid, but dull in the ring. There are parts of the book that are over dramatic and parts that are strange, but it does give a glimpse into the psyche of the Hitman and that alone, I feel, is worth the price of admission. I give the book 4/5 big boots. I mark off for the bitterness and referring to his parents by first name.
The one word that best describes Bret in this book is bitter. The second word is egomaniac. He doesn't come off as having nearly as big an ego as Shawn does in his book (Shawn spent about 80% of his book talking about how great he is and how people hated him for being so damn good), but you can definitely see it. He spends a lot of the book talking about how he is so much better than Hogan or Warrior. His bitterness shows through in so many places in the book it's impossible to recount.
The thing I found the strangest is how he refers to his dad by his first name for the entire book. I'm just not accustomed to anyone referring to their father by their first name, but he does make comments like, "I was excited because Stu and Helen were going to be ringside to watch me wrestle." It's something that makes the book disconcerting to read in parts. I find it very strange to say the least. I also confess that I had no idea the different members of the Hart family hated each other so much.
Still, after all that there are some really great stories in the book. My favorite was how, because of kayfabe, Dibiase flew first class, stayed in 4 and 5 star hotels and was chauffeured around by limo. The other guys were stuck in coach where some of the bigger guys couldn't fit in the seats. A prominent character in his book is the Dynamite Kid who he doesn't always say the most flattering things about and who he now hates because of some things Dynamite said in his book (side note - I read Dynamite's book and didn't see anything in there that's any more disparaging to the Hart's than what Bret wrote). You also find out about the many, many affairs Bret had while on the road which, he says, he feels God gave him permission for because he wasn't using drugs the way the other wrestlers were and he needed his stress relief.
He says some interesting things about the Screwjob, but doesn't focus on it nearly as much as HBK does in his book. Shawn is portrayed in the book as a whiny, cry baby who can often be found weeping in the corner. He states that Montreal was "the day wrestling died." I found that a little bit over dramatic, but whatever.
Some of the things he says about the other wrestlers are surprising to say the least. He claims that Flair has no psychology at all and just calls for random spots in the ring. He also says that Shawn is not nearly as good a wrestler as he is and is limited in what he can do in the ring. Surprisingly, he gives Hogan props for what he did for the industry and says that Hogan deserved to be on top despite the fact that he wasn't a good worker. He acknowledges that Hogan was charismatic and could draw and therefore deserved his spot. It's a view you don't see from a lot of autobiographies.
There is very little or nothing about his reconciliation with Vince and nothing at all is mentioned about Benoit's death (other than that he is dead). The book seems to stop at the time he had his stroke and got out of the hospital. Not much is told about what Bret does with his time today and his plans for the future.
Is the book worth reading? Yes, I think it is. It is long (almost 600 pages), but I think it's well worth the read. I'm not a Bret Hart fan. I always found him solid, but dull in the ring. There are parts of the book that are over dramatic and parts that are strange, but it does give a glimpse into the psyche of the Hitman and that alone, I feel, is worth the price of admission. I give the book 4/5 big boots. I mark off for the bitterness and referring to his parents by first name.
+nod+of+approval.gif)
ing ****.
