Why watch a documentary about the legendary Bruno Sammartino if it only hints at the full scope of his story? We give our honest review of Bruno Sammartino (The Documentary), a film that promises an unforgettable look at the "Italian Strongman," the two-time WWWF Champion whose real-life survival saga is more gripping than any scripted drama. From his harrowing childhood to his rise as wrestling’s most enduring icon, this is an emotional journey you won’t want to miss. But there is more to this legend than what meets the eye, and what’s left unsaid may surprise you.
We give our honest review of Bruno Sammartino (The Documentary). Moving yet incomplete. Why does it skip so much of his wrestling legacy? Photo Credit: WWE, HM3 Bruno LLC. Artwork by Pro Wrestling Stories.
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Bruno Sammartino: The Survivor – A Childhood More Intense Than Any Match
Bruno Sammartino Documentary Poster. Photo Credit: HM3 Bruno LLC.
The youngest of five children, two siblings died when he was a child, and his father, whom he had never met, was a humble blacksmith who moved to America to become a steel mill worker and provide for his clan.
Adding to their hardships, their father’s mail never reached them during the period of conflict. There was no communication whatsoever. His mother was left behind to fend for the struggling family.
At the age of eight, Bruno worked the fields, but he grew sick and incapacitated.
In the Bruno Sammartino documentary, released in 2019 and currently available to stream on Amazon Prime Video, among other platforms, the actors recreate a scene where the occupying forces line the Sammartino family up in their small Italian village, preparing to execute them all.
His mother poignantly whispers to young Bruno not to be scared- that they are about to go to Heaven and meet Jesus.
Luckily, some villagers prevented the massacre, knifing the soldiers in the back.
The horror.
Behind Enemy Lines: The Sammartino Family’s Fight for Survival
Occupying forces attack. Photo Credit: IWM.
After the occupying forces secured their town as a strategic strongpoint, the Sammartino family escaped and hid high in the mountains.
His beloved mother risked death by sneaking down the occupied mountain to their village under cover of darkness to find food for her starving family.
Terrified, Bruno and the kids would wait for her, never knowing if she’d return.
At one point, she’s captured but leaps out of their moving vehicle as the occupying forces shoot her.
Wounded, she somehow manages to stagger back to her family.
Later, his mother carries a sick and dying Bruno down the mountain, and when a doctor says there is nothing that can be done for him, she places leeches on her poor child, saving him.
The Sound of Music, this isn’t.
Reflections of a Legend: Bruno Sammartino’s Emotional Return to the Past
Elderly Bruno Looks Back. Photo Credit: HM3 Bruno LLC.
Seeing an elderly and emotional Bruno walking up the same treacherous mountain path as his mother during her desperate forays for food is memorable and emotional.
When the powerhouse wipes away a tear, referring to her passing as “the worst day of my life,” you’d have to be made of stone not to be touched by it.
However, the film goes back to the mountain and the same story of the kids waiting for their mom to return again and again and again. At first, it’s riveting, but the umpteenth time, it all practically begs for editing.
From Outsider to Icon: Bruno’s American Dream Begins
Bruno Sammartino Comes to the U.S., the scene being shown in the documentary. Photo Credit: HM3 Bruno LLC.
Moving to America, the scrawny and sickly Bruno is bullied and even has his nose broken by a neighborhood ruffian.
But the local Pittsburgh YMCA is his salvation and transforms him.
The rare photos of a teen Bruno blossoming into an unbelievable powerhouse are inspiring, as is his gratitude as an immigrant to America for taking in his family.
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Bruno Sammartino in the Ring: The Wrestling Legend the Film Almost Forgets
A young and green Stan Hansen stomps on Bruno Sammartino in 1976. Photo Credit: WWE.
But then there’s the wrestling end of the film.
What little there is.
A fantastic physical specimen for that era, he gets a shot in the wrestling business and becomes WWWF champion and all-time legend, sacrificing family life to be on the road twenty days a month.
But there’s a parade of legendary villains shown in montages for mere seconds, some so quickly as to be virtually unidentifiable. Bruno gives a behemoth an arm drag, and they cut to his next opponent before you can even determine who it is. I THINK I caught a glimpse of John Tolos versus Bruno from Madison Square Garden, but I wouldn’t bet the mortgage on it.
But with the exception of brief glimpses of some of these legends, you’d never know they even existed, let alone that they were part of Bruno’s legacy.
How do you not detail the Larry Zybysko feud that many consider the greatest heel turn of all time?
What about title losses to Superstar Billy Graham and Ivan Koloff? Wouldn’t those, and the backstories behind them, be worth exploring?
Unanswered Questions: The Gaps in Bruno’s Wrestling Story
Bruno Sammartino and Ivan Koloff square off at Madison Square Garden, January 18th, 1971. Photo Credit: WWE.
Bruno Sammartino’s rationale for no longer wanting the belt after a seven-and-a-half-year run is never addressed.
What did the ex-champ do during his three-year break between lengthy WWWF reigns?
Why, when his body was broken down, did he keep coming back?
What were the politics involved with his son and occasional tag team partner David entering the picture?
Instead of tackling these relevant subjects, they just kept going back to that mountain in Italy. And yes, a family hiding from ruthless occupying forces and facing starvation and death is more powerful than facing an opponent in a worked wrestling bout.
Still, the sheer repetition of it all works against the heartfelt documentary.
Hero or Myth? The Limits of Bruno Sammartino’s Hero Worship
Bruno Sammartino. Photo Credit: WWE.
The other major flaw is that hero worship only goes so far in a documentary.
We learn repeatedly that Bruno was “the greatest” wrestler of all.
A hero to “billions,” this film just wasn’t interested in “warts and all.”
Stating that he “avoided scandal” is fair enough, but not even addressing his disowning of his son, David, allegedly over his steroid use is a major misstep.
There are two joyful scenes unveiling statues of Bruno, and you’re glad he lived to get his due, but a top-notch documentary gives all sides to a complex subject, and this one is almost fawning in its praise.
Silent Feud: Bruno vs. The McMahons – The Story the Documentary Ignores
Bruno Sammartino and Vince McMahon. Photo Credit: WWE.
At one point, Bruno was a vocal critic of the then steroid-ridden WWE, but there’s not a single word of that to be found here.
Nor do they mention Vince McMahon Sr. blackballing him early in his career. Bruno became such a draw in Canada that they begged him to return, but you sure wouldn’t know any of this from the film.
Statues and Celebrations: Bruno Sammartino’s Long-Awaited Recognition
Bruno and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Photo Credit: WWE.
As far as the documentary is concerned, he’s simply a revered WWE Hall of Famer, with no mention of how he refused the induction for so many years.
Arnold Schwarzenegger, HHH, and everybody in between seem to worship him, and it’s just one big love fest. They missed a lot of real-life behind-the-scenes drama that would have added multiple layers to this.
Ironically, the film would have worked better had they just stuck to his traumatic childhood, his mother’s bravery, their coming to America, and the remarkable drive that transformed him into a bodybuilding champion.
Simply put, as powerful as some of the flashback scenes are, they failed on the wrestling side of the story.
The Final Bell: Bruno Sammartino’s Legacy and Mysterious Passing
Bruno Sammartino over the years. Photo Credit: WWE. Artwork by: Pro Wrestling Stories.
Even Bruno Sammartino’s death was glossed over.
In tremendous shape and a fitness fanatic into his 80s, his fans were shocked when he died in 2018. We thought he’d easily live to one hundred.
Yet, there’s no explanation of how or why the man left us.
It’s presented as an afterthought or something edited late in the process.
Bruno Sammartino: A Moving, But Incomplete Portrait – Our Final Verdict
Bruno Sammartino. Photo Credit: WWE.
On IMDb, the International Movie Database, Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini oddly receive credits in this documentary.
They’ve been in better films than this one.
Yes, moving but disappointing sums up this 1 hour and 35-minute documentary.
After watching Bruno Sammartino’s fantastic life story, his life almost begs for a full-fledged biopic, ala The Iron Claw.
Only next time, get a team that can genuinely handle the wrestling end of his inspirational tale.
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Evan Ginzburg is the Senior Editor for Pro Wrestling Stories and a contributing writer since 2017. He’s a published author, with his latest book, "Wrestling Rings, Blackboards, and Movie Sets," released on January 7th, 2025. He was an Associate Producer on the Oscar-nominated movie "The Wrestler" and the acclaimed wrestling documentary "350 Days." He is a 30-plus-year film, radio, and TV veteran and a voice-over actor on the radio drama "Kings of the Ring."
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