THE SHEIK (2014) ****

The Iron Sheik is one of the greatest wrestling heels of all time.  This surprising, heartfelt, and engrossing documentary reveals him to be a likeable teddy bear of a man.  Throughout the film, we see his highs (in both senses of the word) and his lows, but the determination of the man shows through every step of the way.  

As a young man, Khosrow Vaziri was one of the top wrestlers in Iran.  When the Iranian champion dies under mysterious circumstances, it stinks of government assassination.  Fearing for his life, Vaziri skips to America where he becomes an Olympic wrestling coach before hooking up with wrestling legend Verne Gagne.  Using his Iranian heritage to play upon anti-Iranian sentiment in the ‘70s, Vaziri christens himself The Iron Sheik and becomes a legend of the ring.  

It is a testament to The Sheik’s legacy that so many wrestlers come up to him and pay homage during interview segments.  (The Rock reveals The Sheik used to babysit him.)  It’s quite amazing to see just how many careers he helped shape whether training them behind the scenes or giving them a boost by playing the heel.  It’s particularly nice seeing the usually hubristic Hulk Hogan acknowledging the fact that without The Sheik, there would be no Hulkamania. I’ll admit, seeing them hugging like brothers got me a bit misty-eyed. 

I’ve always felt a kinship with the heels, and that feeling is even more pronounced now I’m an adult.  It takes a lot of character to roll over and take a fall to promote the baby face (AKA:  “Good Guy”), especially when you’re as great of a heel as The Sheik and everyone in the arena wants you dead for real.  It’s even more of a badge of honor when you learn that Gagne offered The Sheik $100,000 to break Hogan’s leg in an effort to sabotage Vince McMahon’s fledgling WWF.  Even though his gimmick was pure heel, he was always a baby face at heart.

His career took a drastic nose dive when he was busted for drugs with “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan.  What’s amazing about this is that the fans did not get upset that The Sheik was in possession of drugs, but that the heel and the baby face were riding in the same car together.  This incident is critiqued by many at the moment that shattered the illusion of “real” and “fake” wrestling.  As if they had to be mortal enemies in and out of the ring. 

From then on, his addictions to drugs and alcohol not only derail his career, but also threaten to push his family away.  Like most wrestling storylines, this is a tale of redemption.  After years of heading down a dark path, The Sheik reinvents himself into a social media phenomenon, making hilarious YouTube videos and becoming one of the most recognizable Twitter celebrities.  Today, he’s just as well known for his Twitter tirades as he is for his Camel Clutch.  I think there’s a lesson there for all of us.  

If you’ll indulge me, I must tell you my Iron Sheik story.  Back in the late ‘90s, I used to work on the boardwalk, and one night, while on my break, I went out to get a soda.  As I leaned down to get the Coke out of the machine, I heard a crowd of people chanting behind me and much to my surprise, there was The Iron Sheik strutting around waving the Iranian flag.  It was a surreal moment.  I soon found out he was just doing publicity for an indie wrestling show the next night.  As any wrestling fan would, I showed up, but I was perplexed that The Sheik was not on the card.  I just figured he got hurt or something and couldn’t attend.  The next evening, I went down to get another soda, and lo and behold, The Sheik was sitting on a bench.  No headdress, no flag, no crowd of people.  I approached him and he shook my hand.  I told him I missed him at the show the night before and he said, “Oh, I wasn’t wrestling, I was just promoting the show for my friends.”  I always thought that said a lot about the Sheik that he would use his name to help promote other, lesser-known acts.  If that isn’t was legends are made of, I don’t know what is.