Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

WWE: Falls Count Anywhere Blu-ray Movie Review

Another excellent compilation release from WWE.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman July 5, 2012

The roughest, toughest, knock-down, drag-out brawls in history.

Isn't this the definition of "professional wrestling?" Sure a couple of hulking, sweaty guys duking it out inside the ring is fun, but don't fans really want to see blood and guts? Don't they want skill tossed out the window in favor of an ability to both distribute and absorb real punishment? Isn't bashing opponents with trash cans, taking the fight backstage into the locker room, crashing through tables, and generally causing mayhem more entertaining than merely two or more wrestlers maneuvering about the ring, where most of the action comes from springing off the ropes or diving from the turnbuckle? Matches of this variety -- no rules and definitely just right -- don't happen with the sort of frequency they should, but at least that makes them an event, not merely just another match. WWE's Falls Count Anywhere Matches takes a look back at about thirty years worth of hardcore, anything goes brawls, the best the world of professional wrestling has to offer, from Sergeant Slaughter and Pat Patterson to Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes. It's hardcore history, hardcore entertainment, hardcore Blu-ray.

Breaking hearts, busting bones: hardcore style.

WWE hardcore legend Mick Foley, a.k.a. Dude Love, a.k.a. Cactus Jack, a.k.a. Mankind, hosts Falls Count Anywhere, a chronicle of the greatest no-rules brawls in professional wrestling history. There will be blood. And trash cans, tables, weapons of all varieties, and enough ego and personality to overflow Madison Square Garden, home to the collection's first brawl between the venerable wrestler-turned G.I. Joe figure Sgt. Slaughter and wrestling Hall-of-Famer Pat Patterson. These are the ultimate in real-life bloodsport; sure punches are pulled and kicks miss their targets by a fraction of an inch, but these matches still test the limits of human endurance and pain, yes pain, as fragile men (and a few women) are tossed about arenas in the name of modern-day gladiatorial entertainment. As Mick Foley states, this is professional wrestlers trying "to beat the living snot" out of one another. The only goal: to dazzle the fans, to bust up the arena, and pin the opponent anywhere in the building -- or even outside of it -- to claim pre-scripted victory in some of the biggest, most intense, and certainly most compelling matches in wrestling history.

Mick Foley makes for an agreeable, fun, and informative host for Falls Count Anywhere, and really, who else could it have been? Foley is a god amongst wrestlers when it comes to hardcore matches -- who can forget his 1998 Hell in a Cell match with The Undertaker, perhaps the greatest wrestling match of all time? Not a "falls count anywhere," but certainly representative of the sort of wrestler Foley was, and a match certainly in the spirit of those matches collected in this package. This collection spans nearly thirty years and a veritable who's-who collection of wrestling talent, from the olden days when these sorts of matches were something of a genuine rarity and on through today, when they are a little more commonplace but not quite the defining style of the sport. Everyone from Foley to Randy Orton, Triple H to Stone Cold Steve Austin, Randy Savage to Shawn Michaels, and Shane McMahon to Vince McMahon are all here, ready and willing to take a beating in the name of good old fashioned fun. Foley introduces some of the matches and participants while offering a brief overview of the "falls count anywhere" style. He quips about his clothing and pleasantly tosses items around the room upon entering. It's very much a superficial history, but then again the matches speak for themselves. Foley entertains, but the highlight comes when the bell rings and the wrestling begins. This collection is hard to beat for raw, off the hook wrestling, suitable for dedicated WWE fans and audiences who just want a taste of what hardcore professional wrestling is all about.

The following matches comprise Falls Count Anywhere Matches

Disc One:

• Alley Fight: Pat Patterson vs. Sgt. Slaughter. Madison Square Garden -- May 4, 1981.
• Atlanta Street Fight: Jimmy Valiant & Ms. Atlanta Lively vs. Midnight Express. Starcade -- November 28, 1985.
• Street Fight for the NWA Tag Team Championship: Doom vs. Barry Windham vs. Arn Anderson. Starcade -- December 16, 1990.
• Falls Count Anywhere Match: Sting vs. Cactus Jack. Beach Blast -- June 20, 1992.
• Falls Count Anywhere Match: Randy "Macho Man" Savage vs. Crush. WrestleMania X -- March 20, 1994.
• Chicago Street Fight: Booker T & Sting vs. The Road Warriors. Uncensored -- March 24, 1996.
• Chicago Street Fight: Ahmed Johnson & The Legion of Doom vs. Faarooq, Savio Vega, & Crush. WrestleMania 13 -- March 23, 1997.
• Street Fight: Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Bret "Hit Man" Hart. RAW -- April 21, 1997.
• Falls Count Anywhere Match: Cactus Jack vs. Triple H. RAW -- September 22, 1997.
• Falls Count Anywhere Match: Tazz vs. Bam Bam Bigelow. Heat Wave -- August 2, 1998.
• Hardcore Championship Match: Al Snow vs. Hardcore Holly. St. Valentine's Day Massacre -- February 14, 1999.
• Fully Loaded Strap Match: The Rock vs. Triple H. Fully Loaded -- July 25, 1999.
• Love Her or Leave Her Greenwich Street Fight: Test vs. Shane McMahon. Summerslam -- August 22, 1999.
• WWE Championship Match: Big Show vs. Kane. RAW -- December 20, 1999.
• Hardcore Championship Match: Crash Holly vs. The Headbangers. Smackdown -- March 16, 2000.
• Street Fight: Mr. McMahon vs. Shane McMahon. RAW -- October 29, 2001.
• Street Fight: Ric Flair vs. Mr. McMahon. Royal Rumble -- January 20, 2002.

Disc Two:

• Unsanctioned Street Fight: Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H. SummerSlam -- August 25, 2002.
• Street Fight for the World Heavyweight Championship: Triple H vs. Kevin Cash. Insurrection -- June 7, 2003.
• Falls Count Anywhere Match for the WWE Women's Championship: Melina vs. Mickie James. RAW -- March 5, 2007.
• Street Fight: Triple H vs. Umaga. Cyber Sunday -- October 28, 2007.
• Street Fight: John Cena vs. Umaga. RAW -- June 16, 2008.
• Submissions Count Anywhere Match: D-Generation X vs. Legacy. Breaking Point -- September 13, 2009.
• Street Fight: Rey Mysterio vs. Batista. Smackdown -- December 11, 2009.
• Street Fight: Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes. Smackdown -- November 4, 2011.

WWE: Falls Count Anywhere Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Seen one, seen 'em all. Falls Count Anywhere is the WWE's latest old-new, SD-HD compilation release, and the story remains the same: the SD footage looks like SD footage and the HD footage looks fine, generally, with the newest material topping the slightly older material for raw stability. The SD material -- of which the bulk of the presentation is constructed, including all of disc one -- is framed in its original 1.33:1 window, and the WWE has placed concrete-styled vertical bars to fill the sides of 1.78:1 high definition displays. The oldest footage fares quite poorly while the newer SD footage looks better; the opening Patterson-Slaughter matchup suffers greatly from a myriad of problems, including extremely poor definition, lousy colors, false colors, jagged edges, and a sense that the image could crumble at any moment. Newer SD footage from the mid-to-late 1990s and into the 2000s fares significantly better, featuring more stable details, greatly enhanced clarity, and superior colors, but still the same sort of issues that plague the older footage and SD in general. The same sort of transition holds true for the 1.78:1 HD footage, which comprises the final few fights of the release, all found on disc two. Clarity is dramatically enhanced from the SD footage and from the oldest HD video to the newest. Detail is stable and sharp and colors vibrant and accurate. The image does suffer through some blockiness across some darker backgrounds, but at-a-glance, and also in general, the HD footage impresses. Audiences familiar with any of the recent WWE compilation SD/HD Blu-ray releases -- Best of King of the Ring, Ladder Match -- know exactly what to expect here. The HD material is fine, and the SD material looks as good as it's ever going to look.

WWE: Falls Count Anywhere Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Falls Count Anywhere features the WWE-stadnard Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack. And as is generally the case, the quality varies with the original year of production. The earlier matches offer up but a puny, nearly inefficient listen that plays ringside commentary with sufficient clarity and intelligibility but musters up little more. More current matches, going back before the switch to HD video, offer a fuller, more impressive listen, with crisper commentary; more balanced and even nuanced sound effects in and around the ring; and a good jolt of energy when wrestlers crash into the mat, are met with a trashcan to the face, or fall through tables. The newest HD footage comes with a somewhat improved listen; ambient crowd noise factors into the equation and plays with some more evident clarity, spacing, and natural immersion into the arenas. Play-by-play and color commentary comes through more crisply and better defined, and those hard-hitting WWE sound effects impress, right down to every slap and crash. Of course, Foley's commentary from the studio between matches fares the best, with pinpoint clarity and unmatched smoothness. Fans familiar with these WWE releases know exactly what to expect; nothing's really changed, and the end result is, as always, an adequate sound presentation.

WWE: Falls Count Anywhere Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Falls Count Anywhere contains four Blu-ray exclusive matches, all available on disc two.

• Boiler Room Brawl: Mankind vs. Santa Claus. RAW -- December 20, 1999.
• Street Fight: Triple H vs. Sheamus. Extreme Rules -- April 25, 2010.
• Falls Count Anywhere Match: Rey Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes. Extreme Rules -- May 1, 2011.
• Street Fight: Randy Orton vs. Kane. Smackdown -- July 22, 2011.

WWE: Falls Count Anywhere Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Falls Count Anywhere may not be the pinnacle of WWE compilation releases -- there's little feel that audiences are receiving anything close to a thorough history -- but the matches are spectacular and many, and Mick Foley makes for a natural, lovable host. Here is hours upon hours of wrestling excellence, featuring most of the biggest names of the past thirty years, duking it out inside the ring and, inevitably, outside of it. Blood, busted environments, and some spectacular feats of human agility and endurance are on display. Though lacking in narrative, Falls Count Anywhere excels as a compilation; WWE really couldn't have found a more complete collection of hardcore matches that fit in the "falls count anywhere" category. As for the Blu-ray release, Falls Count Anywhere is typical WWE. The video presentation is as good as it's going to get, the 5.1 lossy audio suffices, and a few bonus matches exclusive to Blu-ray are included on disc two. What's not to love? This is a must-own for wrestling enthusiasts and casual fans who want to relive some of the best of the hardcore wrestling universe. Highly recommended.