To understand why Mickey Rourke was one of the best actors ever during the 80's is to see 9½ Weeks. As sensually wild and exhilarating as the film is, the greatest assets are: the notion of "less is more," the control of subtlety, the cinematography, the limitations of getting know to each other, and the depth of the mysteriousness within John. Ultimately, he, being a paradoxically sexy figure, is the most singular importance to the film's success.

It's clear Mickey Rourke was robbed of Best Actor Oscar. I grew up watching WWF during the 80's and 90's and fondly remember the names of the wrestlers, the legendary matches, and their eventual deaths. Then, I remember the Mickey Rourke films from that time, too, and what an enormous talent he was. Combining both, it's been an amazing convergence to make The Wrestler possible.

Barfly features Mickey Rourke in top form. He steals the show from start to finish while outshining Faye Dunaway, a highly respectable actress, in every scene. If I compare Mickey Rourke to other films in terms of how he acts, walks, and behaves, there's a dramatic transformation going on. Hence, it's a shock how he went from John in 9½ Weeks to Henry in Barfly in the span of one year.

Well, Mickey Rourke did it again: deliver a powerful performance during the 80's. It's an inspiring movie about Francis of Assissi, the patron saint of animals and the environment. He founded a Christian religious order called Franciscan and was thereafter canonized as a saint for his devotion to God by expressing his love for all of God's creation, caring for the poor and sick including those with leprosy, and preaching sermons to animals.

The precursor to The Wrestler? This seems like it. Homeboy is a character study of losers. It does remind me of Midnight Cowboy. The screenplay was actually written by Mickey Rourke under the name of Eddie Cook. It wouldn't be a bad idea to go from Homeboy to The Wrestler because there are a lot of parallels between Johnny Walker and Randy "The Ram" Robinson.

Year of the Dragon is an exciting mess that's a solid neo-noir picture. Mickey Rourke is nearly the best thing; it's his character's crusade attitude that's the winning feature. He seems haunted by what happened in Vietnam and how the war was totally unwinnable, not wanting a repeat of it in Chinatown. Not to miss is the violent, hard-hitting cinematography which is reminiscent of Scarface.

There are two excellent performances. One is rendered by Willem Dafoe; he's superb. The other is Mickey Rourke as Jan the Actress. What's impressive about it is I didn't recognize him until looking up the credits. It was a low-budget film, and Mickey Rourke was pretty much persona non grata in Hollywood so he took whatever he could get. After reading the script by Steve Buscemi, Mickey was floored that he was asked to play a transvestite for a day or two.

Wild Orchid is an interesting Zalman King vehicle with a great Mickey Rourke performance. It's clear Mickey Rourke is in a different league. The way he acts, the way he moves, the way he expresses himself, and the way he talks are prime examples of The Method school of acting. Simply put, Mickey Rourke is perfect for the role of James Wheeler.

Fans of Mickey Rourke can rejoice by seeing his underrated performance in Bullet, an arresting film that's trashy and different. It's probably the best work he had done during the 90's. A lot of his choices during that time have been downright unbelievable, causing him to squander his potential.

White Sands is a terrific neo-noir. It's the performances that make the movie work. The mystery has lots of ceaseless twists and turns, especially the ending. Throughout, the cinematography of New Mexico is resplendent. Sometimes stealing the show is Mickey Rourke who regains his top form after suffering a couple of disasters through Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man and Wild Orchid.