Backyard Dogs (2000 - 1.8 on IMDb)

[GuyLaFarge 0]

So, I'm an independent pro wrestler in southern California, and in the early days of my training, a man by the name of Robert Boris got in touch with the school that I was attending with two big projects he wanted desperately to bring to fruition: An instructional video on the basics of pro wrestling called Slam School, and this gem of a film, BACKYARD DOGS.

 

It stars Walter Emanuel Jones (the original Black Power Ranger) and a fellow named Scott Hamm as the best backyard wrestlers around (in the universe of this film, backyard wrestling is a direct conduit to the big leagues). On their path to stardom, they meet up with Bree Turner (of Deuce Bigalow and MTV's Undressed fame) and Roger Fan (Corky Romano), who turn their journey into an internet reality show and so much unintentional hilarity ensues. Along the way, Vince Van Patten and, somehow, legitimate Japanese wrestling star Hayabusa make appearances as well.

 

For a time, this movie had the coveted #1 spot on IMDb's Bottom 100 list, but for some reason, it's not listed anymore. A shame, too, because its 1.8 rating would put it somewhere between the #21 and #33 spots, in such company as Hobgoblins and The Maize: The Movie.

 

Here's the trailer, complete with not one, but TWO Kid Rock songs:

 

I rented the DVD from a small-time video store chain right around when it came out, but unfortunately, this movie is *really* hard to come by these days. I can't find it anywhere online, and it's not on Netflix. Anyone wanna take a shot at finding it? It's absolutely worth it.

[RyanSz 3140]

Thanks for making me remember this crapfest. I rented it from Blockbuster when it came out because it looked like it was a movie version of those "Best of Backyard Wreslting" DVDS that had white trash kids beating the shit out of each other with softcore pornstars showing their tits, including Major Gunns from WCW. This movie is utter dreck, you feel kinda bad too because the Black Power Ranger is reduced to this kind of movie where somehow backyard wreslting gets you mega-fame and fortune.

 

Oh and you can get the movie on Amazon for about 90 cents.

[PlanBFromOuterSpace 3138]

This reminds me, there's a documentary from about a decade ago on Netflix called "The Backyard", which is about backyard wrestling and the idiots that populate that world. It's pretty sad to watch, and by sad, I don't mean SAD sad, but like pathetic sad, because these guys don't have a clue. For the most part, they're just the most awkward, socially inept, borderline mentally handicapped, unathletic kids, and to them, "wrestling" seems to mean "You go over there, I'll hit you with that. Now I'll go over there, so you can hit me with that. I'll put you through a table, and then you put me through a table", etc. Real professional wrestler Rob Van Dam does show up in some interview segments though to pretty much say "If you don't actually train and do things the right way, you're never getting anywhere", and I've never heard of any of these other guys, so he must be right.

[RyanSz 3140]

There was only one guy from the "Best of Backyard Wrestling" DVDs who has actually made it as an independant wrestler and that was M-Dogg 20 who actually had some talent as a high flyer, he even appeared on that short lived Wrestling Society X show on MTV which deserves a HDTGM episode for being Crank levels of insane, youtube it and you'll see what I mean.The rest of these guys have the ECW mindset of that time where they thought that just stabbing each other with broken light tubes equaled wrestling.

 

The matches were fun to watch for how nuts these kids were, but most of them had no chance of making it.

[PlanBFromOuterSpace 3138]

Yeah, that's Matt Cross. He makes the rounds in the indys quite a bit and was on the new WWE Tough Enough last year. Anyway, I've never seen anyone explain the light bulbs, like WHERE they get all those damn things to begin with. I imagine they're stolen from dumpsters or something.

[RyanSz 3140]

They probably get them wholesale at Walmart, the same place where the preppy kids on the Backyard DVDs get their trampolines. Because if we know anything about backyard wrestling, it's either white trash kids fighting on crudely made rings in their dirt backyard or preppy kids fighting on their trampolines.

[GuyLaFarge 0]

Bumping this topic, because my prayers have been answered and Backyard Dogs has finally come to Netflix Instant!! I recommend stopping anything you're doing and watching this ASAP.

[Johnny Unusual 525]

Ugh. I think being a direct to video, this won't happen, but any pro-wrestler should be ashamed of a movie that implies backyard wrestling can get you into the big leagues. That's a pretty immoral, and I imagine, largely untrue think to say.