WWE: Ladies and Gentlemen, My Name Is Paul Heyman Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.0

WWE: Ladies and Gentlemen, My Name Is Paul Heyman Blu-ray Movie Review

Not a Paul Heyman guy? You will be after watching this.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 5, 2014

The greatest manager in sports entertainment history.

While the WWE may best be known for body slams, ladder matches, and WrestleMania, the outfit's home video department is really quite good at producing retrospective documentaries concerning the industry's top talent. Films depicting the likes of "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, The Rock, and CM Punk are not only gems of the WWE Home Video library but are actually some of the finest biographical films out there. Mix in plenty of supporting matches and moments, and wrestling fans have become positively spoiled with the WWE's impressive all-in-one home video efforts. Yet all of these share one thing in common: they're all about the stars. What about, fans may ask, the people who mold the stars, those individuals who, outside of the ring, helped to pioneer and shape the industry, both its stars in the ring and its happenings outside of it? Enter Ladies And Gentleman My Name Is Paul Heyman, a superb Documentry that explores the life and career of manager, talent developer, writer, and wrestling entrepreneur extraordinaire Paul Heyman, a man of many talents that are chronicled in yet another top-notch WWE Home Video biographical film.

It's...awesome!

In Ladies And Gentleman My Name Is Paul Heyman, the title figure shares his life story, beginning with his early life -- he is the son of a holocaust survivor -- before transitioning to his days as a wrestling photographer and journalist and the editor of his own independent wrestling newsletter. It follows his ascendancy through the ranks and greater and growing access to the inside circles of professional wrestling. It covers his days under the "Paul E. Dangerously" persona in the WCW, his stewardship of the ECW and dealings with the WWE while heading up the ECW, and his career turns that led him to the WWE. It examines his work with talents like Brock Lesnar and CM Punk, his tenure as lead writer for SmackDown, and his ventures beyond the professional wrestling landscape.

The best thing about these WWE personality Documentaries is meeting the subjects outside of the ring, learning about who they are and not just seeing what they do. This Paul Heyman film is no exception. Sure, there remains a somewhat brash and cocky man behind the scenes, away from the ringside shenanigans most people only ever see, but there's also a humble man in front of this camera, a man who respects his roots, understands his place, and rolls with the punches, so to speak, never allowing failure -- and an end -- to finish him off but instead provide him with a fresh start. Heyman proves an almost affable interview subject, a man of passion to be sure but also a well-spoken individual whose charisma is never lost but whose gentler soul is exposed with every syllable. Heyman makes for a terrific subject. His career spans almost every major wrestling brand of the past few decades and his fingerprints remain all over the landscape, from his work with superstars like Brock Lesnar and CM Punk all the way down through to his time on WCW and his trendsetting work with the more aggressively styled ECW.

WWE: Ladies and Gentlemen, My Name Is Paul Heyman Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Ladies And Gentleman My Name Is Paul Heyman features a rather good 1080i, 1.78:1-framed transfer. Note that all vintage footage has been altered to fit the 1.78:1 frame rather than retain the original 4:3 aspect ratio (however, all supplemental material retains its original aspect ratio). The image offers striking clarity and detail in newly minted interview footage. Clothing textures and facial lines are marvelously detailed, and the image is so clear and robust that viewers can see the nearly microscopic details of Stephanie McMahon's eye makeup. Colors are even and satisfying throughout, though there's a slight warmth to a number of shots that appear to have been deliberately over-processed for visual effect. Light banding, blocking, and noise are evident here and there, but rarely to any sort of detrimental level. Vintage footage varies in quality but doesn't factor into the overall score. For the newer material, however, this represents WWE Home Video at the top of its game.

WWE: Ladies and Gentlemen, My Name Is Paul Heyman Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Ladies And Gentleman My Name Is Paul Heyman arrives on Blu-ray with a basic Dolby Digital 5.1 lossless soundtrack. This is a nuts-and-bolts presentation that's heavy on dialogue. The spoken word is delivered cleanly and accurately; newer Heyman interview footage -- and newly minted clips with others who speak during the program, like Jim Ross and Stephanie McMahon -- fares best, but older clips from throughout his career, some dating back a couple of decades, are suitably delivered as well. Musical delivery satisfies with adequate spacing and energy, though some of it that plays underneath clips comes through as a little more shallow than expected. Overall, however, this is a satisfying soundtrack given the limited material with which it has to work.

WWE: Ladies and Gentlemen, My Name Is Paul Heyman Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Ladies And Gentleman My Name Is Paul Heyman contains a massive amount of bonus content across both Blu-ray discs. Below is breakdown of what's included. Unlike the classic footage from the main film, these supplements retain their original aspect ratios (4:3 and 1.78:1 where applicable).

Disc One:

Promos: A collection of backstage interviews with early Heyman personas.

• Paul E. Is Always in Contact: AWA Championship Wrestling, August 1987.
• Pink Suspenders: AWA Superstars, August 1987.
• I'll Be Johnny Carson: AWA Championship Wrestling, August 1987.
• Danger Zone with Ted E. Bear: AWA Championship Wrestling, September 1987.
• You Want to Be a Cartoon?: AWA All Star Wrestling, September 1987.
• If Excitement Had a Name: AWA Superstars, September 1987.
• More Publicity: AWA Championship Wrestling, September 1987.
• Adrian Adonis: AWA All Star Wrestling, October 1987.
• The Definition of Pro Wrestling: AWA Superstars, November 1987.

WCW: Heyman interviews and moments from several key points in his WCW career.

• The Sequel, Jim Cornette: NWA Pro Wrestling, October 1988.
• Nobody Wanted Paul E.: World Championship Wrestling, November 1988.
• Louisville Slugger: NWA Pro Wrestling, January 1988.
• The Year of Paul E. Dangerously: World Championship Wrestling, January 1989.
• Danger Zone with Ric Flair: World Championship Wrestling, March 1989.
• I'm So Handsome: NWA Main Event, March 1989.
• I Don't Have Wrestlers, I Have Animals: World Wide Wrestling, March 1989.
• Ding Dong, Who Is It?: NWA Main Event, July 1989.
• The Era of the Dangerous Alliance: World Championship Wrestling, September 1989.
• Sting's Doll: Power Hour, May 1991.
• Save Us From Captain Oklahoma: World Championship Wrestling, November 1991.
• The Dangerous Alliance: World Championship Wrestling, November 1991.
• The Paul E. Awards: World Wide Wrestling, February 1992.
• The Ultimatum Is at Hand: Pro Wrestling, April 1992.

ECW: More vintage Heyman clips, these form his time in the ECW.

• A New Dangerous Alliance: ECW Hardcore TV, October 1993.
• WCW Wants Sabu: ECW Hardcore TV, June 1994.
• Wrestler and Violence: ECW Hardcore TV, July 1994.
• Winds of Change: ECW Hardcore TV, November 1994.
• Cash Rules Everything: ECW Hardcore TV, December 1994.
• Best Damn Wrestling You've Ever Seen: ECW Hardcore TV, January 1995.
• There Ain't No Organization Like ECW: ECW, February 1996.
• ECW Comes to Pay-Per-View: ECW, February 1997.
• We Cleared Cablevision!: ECW, March 1998.
• The Card Has Changed: ECW Guilty as Charged, January 1999.
• The War Has Just Begun: ECW on TNN, June 2000.

Stories: A series of, in essence, "deleted scenes" from the primary feature.

• Photo of Vince Sr. & Andre.
• Riding in Blassie's Car.
• Troubles in Memphis.
• The Mole.
• Borrowing Time.
• Conference Call.
• Paul Heyman Guy.

Teasers: Paul Heyman appears in several short teasers for this release.

• Real Story?.
• PG Era.
• Statute of Limitations.
• In Your Face.
• More Extreme.

Disc Two:

WWE: Heyman stars in a number of key moments from his time in the WWE.

• Paul Heyman Hates Mr. McMahon's Stinkin' Guts: SmackDown -- November 15, 2001.
• Introducing: "The Next Big Thing": RAW -- April 8, 2002.
• Paul Heyman, Mr. McMahon & Eric Bischoff All Share One Ring: RAW -- May 23, 2005.
• Paul Heyman Thanks the ECW Faithful: ECW One Night Stand -- June 12, 2005.
• The Resurrection of ECW: ECW One Night Stand -- June 11, 2006.
• From the Bingo Hall to the Garden: ECW -- September 12, 2006.
• Mr. McMahon Gives Paul Heyman a Performance Review: RAW -- January 28, 2013.
• Paul Heyman Gives CM Punk His Resignation: RAW -- February 11, 2013.
• It's Clobbering Time for CM Punk: RAW -- July 15, 2013.
• Volcano: RAW -- October 21, 2013.
• Paul Heyman Drops a Pipe Bomb: RAW -- March 3, 2014.

Matches: Key matches featuring Heyman as a major player.

• The Original Midnight Express vs. The New Midnight Express: Main Event -- January 21, 1989.
• Hardy Boys vs. Brock Lesnar & Paul Heyman: Judgment Day -- May 19, 2002.
• No Disqualification Handicap Elimination Match: CM Punk vs. Curtis Axel & Paul Heyman. Night of Champions -- September 15, 2013.

Disc Two Blu-ray Exclusives:

Stories: Additional "deleted scenes" from the main program.

• Riding a Bike Down a Rooftop.
• Lending a Hand.
• Managers' Fan Clubs.
• Austin Idol's Manager.
• Cellphone.
• New York?.
• "I Owe My Career to Paul Heyman".
• Micromanaging.
• Needed Venting.
• Paul the Promo Guy.
• Mystery Partner.
• Program Money.
• Leather Bag.
• Sending ECW a Tape.
• No Show Groomsman.
• King of NYC.
• White Corvette.
• Supported by the Competition.
• Ended Up with Nothing.
• Touring the ECW Arena.
• Out with a Bang.
• Common Bond.
• Breaking Vince's Desk.
• Baseball Slide.
• Creative Paul.
• King Kong.
• Because I Can't.
• Dirty Laundry.
• Real Friends.
• Comical Paul.
• Kids Cutting Promos.
• Heroes.
• Genius or Insane?.
• Genuine Friend.

Promo: Heyman appears with Brock Lesnar following Lesnar's ending of The Undertaker's streak.

• Conquerer of the Streak: RAW -- April 7, 2014.

WWE: Ladies and Gentlemen, My Name Is Paul Heyman Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Ladies And Gentleman My Name Is Paul Heyman is another outstanding WWE Documentary, this one a novelty in that the subject isn't a musclebound superstar but instead a man who is seen and heard only around the apron. His influence extends well beyond the stage persona and his personality is quite different than what fans see when he's standing alongside a star of his making with a microphone in his hand. This documentary tells a frequently compelling story that spans several decades of professional wrestling -- including the WCW, ECW, and WWE -- and an influence in the sports entertainment landscape that, outside of anyone not named "McMahon," may be most prolific that any non-wrestler in the industry's history has enjoyed. WWE's Blu-ray release of Ladies And Gentleman My Name Is Paul Heyman delivers excellent video, solid audio, and hours upon hours of bonus content. Highly recommended.