WWE: The Life and Times of Mr Perfect

Introduction

A second-generation wrestler - son of the legendary Larry "The Axe" Hennig - professional wrestling was always likely to be in the blood of Curt Hennig. But it was a surprise to many when Curt - the WWF's "Mr Perfect" - became as close to the personification of that moniker as he actually did.

Known mostly as an arrogant heel (bad guy), Hennig's athleticism, timing, and ring mechanics led him to being one of the very finest competitors of the late '80s and early '90s. His worth was initially proven in the stomping ground of his father, the AWA, before he hit the big time in the WWF, where he was a two-time Intercontinental champion, and had memorable bouts with Hulk Hogan and Bret Hart, to name but two.

Sadly, in 2003, with age and injuries having taken a remarkable toll on him, Hennig died from an acute cocaine overdose, while under contract to the TNA Wrestling organisation. He was 44.

In 2008, Hennig was inducted by his family into the WWE Hall of Fame, an act which precipitated this DVD release, "The Life And Times of Mr Perfect". Here, a documentary tells the story of his life, which many matches and vignettes available as extras.

Video

Video is presented in 4:3 fullscreen PAL and is typical of a WWE DVD production - in other words, 4:3 doesn't really get any better.

As always, of particular note is the tremendous use of archive footage, spanning Hennig's entire career, from the very early days of the WWF, to his last major run with the company, in 2002. Naturally, due to the age and production values of some of the source material, there are minor issues with film artefacts, but none of the footage here has ever looked better on commercial release.

Audio

Audio is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0, and is also very good. As with the video, the quality depends on the source material, but is generally of a high standard.

Background music stays just as that, and any potential problem with hearing the interview comments does not occur here.

Extras

There are lots of extras to keep fans happy across this two-disc set, and the matches begin on Disc One, with a match from 1982, as Hennig makes an early Madison Square Garden performance for the WWF, against the late, great Eddie Gilbert. It's rather slower and more-hold based than anything else on this DVD, but it's a fine piece of rare footage.

Moving forward to 1985 and the American Wrestling Association, Hennig and Scott Hall (complete with a hilarious Tom Selleck moustache) face Jimmy Garvin and Steve Regal (not the British wrestler of the same name) for the AWA Tag Team Titles. There's quite a bit of stalling in the early moments of the bout, but once it gets going, it's a fun TV-style match.

Taking a break from the in-ring action, we get a look at the 2007 Hall of Fame induction ceremony, with the award accepted on Curt's behalf by the members of his family. Though it's fitting that he be remembered, it's also a sad moment, given that he was not alive to accept the award himself.

After the somewhat-embarrassing "Rap Is Crap" video - which, if you're wondering, was a rather odd WCW storyline involving rapper Master P - there are some tremendous WWF vignettes, showing Hennig performing at sports "perfectly", in the build up to his WWF feud with Hulk Hogan. Often accompanied by manager The Genius (and a poem), it's interesting to watch Hennig improve as a performer in these over time.

Rounding off the extras on Disc One, there are a couple of anecdotes about Curt, from good friend Wade Boggs, and fellow Minnesota native, and now UFC star, Brock Lesnar.

There really could not have been a better opening to Disc Two than the AWA Heavyweight Title bout with champion Nick Bockwinkel, which not only was probably the finest match of Hennig's career, but was truly one of the very best American matches of the 1980s. Long but brilliantly-paced, this is a must-see bout for any wrestling fan.

Hennig vs Terry Taylor was unfortunately an overly-basic contest considering the talents of both men, which is a comment not applicable to the next bout, Hennig's first on this collection with Bret Hart. From 1989, may not have the atmosphere of the 1991 Summerslam contest, but it is tremendous nonetheless.

Hennig drags a very good bout out of Hulk Hogan next, before an entertaining Intercontinental Title bout between he and "Texas Tornado" Kerry Von Erich. Their many bouts during this 1990 period were hit and miss, but this one, refereed by "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, was a fun one.

The aforementioned Summerslam 1991 bout with Bret Hart proceeds, and is a shining example of everything that can be good about American wrestling. Fast-paced, athletic, and with a good story, Hennig and Hart produce one of the best WWF pay-per-view matches ever here.

Two years and one devastating back injury later, Hennig returned to Summerslam as a babyface, for a bout with Shawn Michaels. While a good match, it lacked the fire of the bout from two years previous, a statement which can also be applied to the final match on this disc, the only WCW bout on this set, as Hennig faces Bret Hart once again. By far, it's the most tepid of their contests, and while you can see that both were trying to reach down for the magic that they once had, they simply were not able to pull it off.

Main feature

Clocking in at 1hr 15mins, the main feature documentary of "The Life and Times of Mr Perfect" is a little shorter than those that have been dedicated to previous Hall of Fame wrestlers, but to dismiss on that basis would be foolhardy indeed.

As with previous efforts, the sheer amount of archive high-quality footage used here is the biggest bonus to the documentary. From old-school WWF, to the AWA, 1990s WWF, and even WCW, there's footage here from each, making this an essential reminder of the man's career. There's lots of in-ring action on show, often voiced-over by interview footage with the likes of close friend (and baseball legend) Wade Boggs, Harley Race, Arn Anderson, and Larry Hennig, all of which helps to tell the story of Hennig's career, in chronological order.

There's humour in the story as well, with a chapter dedicated to Hennig's predilection for practical jokes, or "ribs". Some were hilarious, as this chapter shows, but some were also a little nasty, too. Not that that often makes it any less hilarious.

There's more information here about Hennig's early career here than has often been the case with other releases, but it must be said that there is a major gap in proceedings here, as Hennig's return from a back injury in late-1992 is largely skipped over. Considering his return from an 18-month hiatus came with a hot angle involving Ric Flair, that's a major disappointment.

The other major difficulty is in the conclusion of the documentary, which ends rather abruptly with some of the details of his death, at the relatively young age of 44. His death was caused by cocaine intoxicaton, a fact which comes right out of the blue to the uninformed viewer, since there was no previous mention or allusion to drugs throughout the documentary.

Those issues aside, the main feature here is very much worth viewing, for the interview footage, and the archive video available here. It's not "perfect", but it is very good indeed.





With some excellent extras and a fine documentary available across this two-disc set, picking up this release should be a no-brainer for wrestling fans, and for those of Curt "Mr Perfect" Hennig in particular.