
Make Them Believe
This interesting film gives viewers an inside look at Moscow’s underground wrestling scene from the perspective of a promising young performer.
This young man is quick to state that what he likes most about wrestling is that there are some things he can do in the ring that he can’t do in real life. In real life he is studying, he lives in a dorm, and he has a girlfriend—the usual. But once a month he gets to perform in the wrestling ring, and while he’s there he transforms into a super hero who is determined to earn the crowd’s respect.
Timofey Maltser remembers watching the WWF on an old TV when he was a small boy. He was fascinated by the masculinity of the wrestlers and vowed to become just like them when he grew up. Even though his dad warned him that all of it was fake Tim remained devoted to his dream. He is now a wrestler known as ‘The American Hope’. His character is the bad guy, although in real life, Maltser, says he is a good guy.
Maltser wants promoters from the United States to see his performance. He believes that if this happens one of them will eventually approach him with a contract to perform in the US. According to Maltser, many people in Russia haven’t learned to appreciate the sport yet.
Ivan Markov is one of the country’s fiercest wrestlers. He has been wrestling for over a decade. Markov is known as ‘The Locomotive’ and he states that he doesn’t really have a character— he just plays himself.
However, Markov’s mom seems to have a hard time understanding why her son chooses to make his living in such a violent manner, especially since he has a law degree and actually worked as a lawyer for a time. But he gave it all up for wrestling.
Maltser and Markov will wrestle each other. Each man brings his own expectations to the match, but for Tim it’s the most important match of his career until now. This is his big opportunity to become famous and to get noticed and respected as a wrestler. Will he make it? Find out now.