(Mickey Rourke as Randy “The Ram” Robinson in Darren Aronofsky’s masterpiece The Wrestler. AP Photo)

I don’t see nearly as many movies as I used to. Three years of college working at a theatre kinda turned me off to the experience anymore.

I don’t claim to know what great movies are. I just know when I’ve watched something I felt was great.

So now I only go to a theater a couple of times a year. This year, some of the only movies I saw were The Dark Knight, Wall-E and The Wrestler.

Though I hoped all three would be nominated for Best Picture, I have no problems at all that Slumdog Millionaire won.

With that in mind, I watched most of the Academy Awards last night in hoping for three things: Heath Ledger winning Best Supporting Actor. Wall-E winning best original screenplay (or at least Best Animated Film).

And the shoo-in and most important, Mickey Rourke winning Best Actor for his portrayal of Randy “The Ram” Robinson in The Wrestler. Ugh, one of three with only Ledger earning the honor.

By the way, great acceptance speech by the Ledger family. They didn’t make it a bunch of cliches and make it a contrived emotional speech. Because it was done the way it was with his father, mother and sister staying composed, actually thought it became more emotional because of it.

As a long time pro wrestling aficionado who still gets geared up for the big events, thought Rourke did as good a job as he possibly could have done.

Without giving away too much (hate to use the term Spoiler Alert), it was the little scenes that earned him The Boneman’s honor. The scenes in the deli or the scene where he’s playing Nintendo against the kid and is so competitive. Or the shopping for his daughter scene? Those are the ones that struck a chord with me more than the wrestling scenes.

There’s a reason legendary wrestlers like Ric Flair and Rowdy Roddy Piper got emotional watching this. Nearly any wrestler in the last 30 years can see themselves in “The Ram’s” shoes. The glory days are gone, you can’t let go, and you just want one more shot.

Though Marisa Tomei’s performance was great and added much to the movie, didn’t think she would win Best Supporting Actress. She didn’t. But her and Evan Rachel Wood did fine in their roles.

It was just the right blend of everything coming together. A great script and Rourke putting on his finest performance. I saw shades of so many wrestlers (or at least their characters) in the movie that it was easy to get attached to it.

Little nuances, little gestures and dialogue that rang so true in the wrestling world. Not caring about competing in a HS gym because at least you’re in front of the crowd again. The backstage relationships of the indie workers. All good stuff.

No doubt in my mind that Sean Penn is probably great in Milk. But he’s had his night before and probably will again. Last night should have been Rourke’s night, plain and simple.

I don’t want to hit you over the head with how it’s a story of redemption, both for the character and the actor. It’s still true, but it’s been said before and by better critics.

My only complaint on The Wrestler, a little too short for my liking. Was hoping for a solid 2:15-ish, doesn’t even clock in over two hours. Still a first-day buy when it comes out on DVD (I’ll even buy one of those gimmicky Special Edition sets if it’s out there).

If you haven’t seen Rourke’s acceptance speech from the Independent Spirit Awards this weekend, do so. His bluntness also would have made last night something memorable.

I want another “Ram Jam.” So he wasn’t acknowledged by the Academy, the wrestling crowd will embrace him. Why not come to WrestleMania XXV in Houston in April?

Back tomorrow with some UFC and boxing thoughts from this weekend.

Sorry for the delay, fight fans. Got a little caught up in other areas the last couple of days. Now for the first installment of the Boneman’s Mailbag (a big high five to someone who comes up with a creative name).

FightFanMoon asks my assessment of Oklahoma boxers?

Without question, no one can touch Allan Green at this point. His falling out with Tony Holden does not take away from his natural talent and skills. The super middleweight from Tulsa can be a world champion. But right now, he just needs to get back in the ring. He’s wasting a prime year of his life with these promotional issues.

After that, there’s a dropoff for sure, but there are still some solid names such as Grady Brewer, Carson Jones and George Tahdooahnippah. There are questions for each (Grady’s age, George’s opposition level and Carson’s focus), but each provides that certain something that makes you want to show up to a fight.

Now if you ask me in six months, names like Kyle Sherman and Noah Zuhdi might be thrown in, especially Kyle. He’s just waiting for that right opportunity. Sadly in boxing, you can spend your whole career just waiting.

Pappy asks if I’m crazy for thinking Brock Lesnar can take out Randy Couture?

I’ve been called worse. I remember Brock at Minnesota, so I just think of what a physical specimen he is. But of course, Couture has the experience and knowledge to make Brock’s night a forgettable one. It’s their old cliche of Couture has forgotten more about MMA than Brock even knows.

The buzz for this is going to be something the sports world has not seen from MMA. This is a legit Super Fight, and Dana White knows this is his time to strike. Nov. 15, OU is off and OSU is at Colorado, no reason for my Oklahoma brothers to miss this showdown on PPV. I’ll have a boatload more to say about this fight as it gets closer, but right now I’m leaning toward Couture.

Some e-mails. David in California asks who is my favorite Ninja Warrior contestant (this goes back to me saying former OU gymnast Jonathan Horton would make a great contestant)?

There are so many to choose from. It’s sad that you reach the point where you feel like you know those guys. They build courses in their backyard and stuff like that. It’s kinda nuts.

For my money, you can’t top Shingo Yamamoto aka the gas station man. We’ve watch him advance in his days at the gas station from attendant to manager, and he’s always there. He’s starting to get a lil old as well, but he’s always fun to watch.

Bill in Kansas asks who are my favorite boxers today?

I’ll never believe he’s retired, so Floyd Mayweather is going to top that list 11 times out of 10. Ever since he battered Angel Manfredy in 1998, I’ve been riding his wave. I’m in awe of the things he can do in a boxing ring.

But if Floyd has called it quits (he hasn’t), Manny Pacquiao is right near the top as is Paul Williams and Kelly Pavlik.

PacMan is never involved in a dull fight and has just taken on an insane list of who’s who in the fight game in the last few years. Williams is a freak at welterweight and couldn’t have made a better debut at middleweight Thursday night with a first round KO. I’ve always gotten mad at him about not sitting on his punches. Looks like he is starting to do that. Pavlik because he is one of the most personable guys around. The blue-collar aspect definitely rings true, and he is an Ohio boy as well. I don’t know what I would like to see more, Williams vs. Pavlik or Calzaghe vs. Pavlik.

Jenny in Tennessee asks about some of my favorite fights?

Hey, I have a female reading the site, whoo hoo. Seriously, that’s almost as tough as asking an all-time fighter list. There are so many.

Let’s see, I’ll just throw some out there. If anyone wants to know why these have been chosen, comment or send me an e-mail and maybe I’ll do a follow-up.

The entire Israel Vazquez and Juan Manuel Marquez trilogy, Diego Corrales-Jose Luis Castillo I, Erik Morales-Marco Antonio Barrera I, Pernell Whitaker-Julio Cesar Chavez, Evander Holyfield-Mike Tyson I, Joe Frazier-Muhammad Ali I, Oscar de La Hoya-Fernando Vargas, Tito Trinidad-Fernando Vargas, Ivan Robinson-Arturo Gatti I & II, Hasim Rahman-Lennox Lewis I, Holyfield-Riddick Bowe trilogy. Wow, I could go on and on and on. It’s almost sad, I bet I could name more than 100 fights within 10 minutes that I absolutely love and have watched multiple times on my created DVDs.

Jeff in Texas asks my prediction for Kimbo and Ken Shamrock next week?

I won’t make any bones about it. I am pulling for Shamrock with everything in me. And it’s not because I don’t like Kimbo or appreciate what he can bring to MMA. I’ve always had that soft spot for Ken, going back to his WWE days in the late ’90s. Unfortunately, I don’t think he has anything left. Now I’m more or less just hoping Ken is physcially OK after the fight.

Tyrone in Mississippi asks will there ever be another major player in MMA besides UFC?

Excellent question. I don’t think so, but I’m not necessarily sure it’s not a good thing. Dana White is showing he knows what he’s doing. Elite XC is struggling beyond belief. HDNet has just offered to buyout the IFL (International Fight League). I’m no businessman, so I don’t know what’s going on here.

Competition is good but competent competition is much better. Perhaps Affliction is on the right path with the partnership with Golden Boy. We’ll see. It’s just so tough to stay afloat these days.

Appreciate the questions and keep ‘em coming. Next week is Shamrock and Kimbo, and we’re getting closer to Chad Dawson and Antonio Tarver and Bernard Hopkins and Kelly Pavlik. It’s a great fall for fight fans.

One of my favorite boxing writers is Lee Groves of maxboxing.com. He also works as a CompuBox punch stat counter for ESPN2 among other things. But for now, I’m marveling at the simplicity to which he describes amateur boxing.

“Amateur boxing has become like fencing.” It’s simple, easy to understand and right on the money. It’s about gettting in, getting your one good shot and leaving. Ugh, it’s so embarrassing.

Cuba brought its least amount of boxers to the Games since it boycotted the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. But as we stand at the semis, the Cubans are guaranteed eight medals. Only one person didn’t qualify.

As for the US, well, less said, the better. That’s not to say some of these kids won’t have productive professional careers, but this has been a disaster.

One boxer will get a medal, heavyweight Deontay Wilder. With such limited experience, nobody thought Wilder stood a chance to be in this position. So that’s the good news. The bad news is how one-by-one, our studs have fallen.

Everyone knows the system is screwed up. But the fighters have accepted that. Still, in the last round, several US fighters didn’t show that sense of urgency. They were allowed to be manipulated by the system.

Anyway, Wilder is a great story. A 22-year-old kid from Tuscaloosa who hadn’t even picked up boxing when the 2004 Olympics were going on. He’s fighting hard for his 2-year-old daughter, Naieya, who is suffering from spina bifida.

Wilder is your prototypical boxer today. He played basketball and football for years and then moved to boxing. It’s one of the reasons why we haven’t seen a dominant heavyweight since Evander Holyfield. The kids today don’t dream of becoming the next Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, Joe Frazier, etc.

As much as I deny it, when Wilder steps into the ring with Clemente Russo of Italy in Friday’s semifinal, I’ll be watching. Like I said, I’m sick. I have issues.

Ninja Warrior update: Jack in Saginaw, Michigan, gave me his thoughts about Horton and Ninja Warrior. “I’m sure you guys are clouded by the fact that Horton is from Oklahoma. He wouldn’t be able to complete the first stage. He’s a great gymnast, but he wouldn’t stand a chance at Mount Midoriyama. Too small, sorry.”

I disagree, still. To clarify, there are four stages to Ninja Warrior. Stage 3 is easily the toughest, but Stage 1 is the longest and provides the most excitement. If Horton could clear the wall, he’s got it. You can’t change my mind. Stage 3 would be tough for Jon because of the Body Prop where once again, height would be an issue.

When I become obsessed with something, I go all-out. Back home for two weeks, my older brother introduced me to Ninja Warrior (or Sasuke as it’s called in Japan).

How has the Boneman missed this show? This is incredible. “It’s not a game…it’s Ninja Warrior.” Anyway, I’ve now gone out of my way to try to see as many episodes as possible and have twice watched six-hour marathons in the last month.

This isn’t the most recent edition, but it’s the latest one that has the full first stage. Enjoy.

Mr. Ninja Warrior at it again.

Anyway, after watching Jonathan Horton these last four years at OU and the Olympics, could Horton be the next Ninja Warrior? Gymnasts and trampolinists (is that a word) do so well at Ninja Warrior because they have most of the attributes the modern day ninja would need.

Both of the Hamm brothers, Paul and Morgan, have reached Stage 3 of the four-stage process. And Bulgarian star and multi-time medalist Jordan Jovtchev is also a regular participant.

Why let those athletic gifts go to waste? I don’t know if the competitors get anything more than pride, but these guys are awesome. Watch any of the Ninja Warrior shows on G4, and you’ll see what I mean. Guys building their own stages in their backyard? Or my favorite, the gas station manager who never ever misses a competition.

Anyway, back to Horton. I can only see one possible obstacle…the crooked wall. We all know Jon can jump out of the building, but his lack of height would be tough to overcome. He would be able to do the “Jumping Spider” because of his flexibility. And please, the “Flying Chute” is just like a release from the high bar.

I’m not sure if Jon knows anything about the show. I assume he does since the Hamm brothers have been on so much.

But Jon if you’re listening, give Ninja Warrior a try. The show is becoming so popular that it’s spawning American versions called American Ninja Challenge. But what I like about that is the winners get the chance to compete on the Japanese version, the real version.

10 years and counting, thanks Ninja Warrior.