Queen of the Ring (Blu-ray Review)
Director
Ash AvildsenRelease Date(s)
2024 (July 14, 2026)Studio(s)
Intrinsic Value Films/Sumerian Pictures (Kino Lorber)- Film/Program Grade: B-
- Video Grade: A
- Audio Grade: A
- Extras Grade: B+
Review
The Avildsen name has become synonymous with underdog sports films. Father John G. gave us Rocky, The Karate Kid and 8 Seconds. And now son Ash is giving us Queen of the Ring, the story of the rise of Mildred “Millie Muscles” Burke (Arrow’s Emily Bett Rickards), a young single mother who defined women wrestlers from the 1930s through the 1950s with her partner and promoter Billy Wolfe, paving the way for WWE, WCW and GLOW. Coming up through the travelling carnivals, Burke and Wolfe pushed for their sport to be publicly accepted (it was illegal for women to wrestle each other—and surprisingly, up until quite recently in a couple of states) and winning the case and eventually making Burke one of the highest earning athletes in any sport. Queen of the Ring is a pretty standard underdog rags-to-riches telling of Burke’s true story—from pushing to be allowed to follow her dream by stubborn men, fighting to be accepted in the sport by stubborn men and dealing with the philandering stubborn man, Billy Burke. Sadly, Queen of the Ring ends up feeling more like a Hallmark girlboss film than a powerful cinematic underdog tale. Not for lack of trying, mind you. The cast, led by Rickards as Burke and Josh Lucas as Wolfe, includes a who’s who list of talent from Teen Wolf’s Tyler Posey on through Everything’s Walton Goggins. Standouts include Francesca Eastwood, Marie Avgeropoulos, Deborah Ann Woll, Cara Buono and the ever-lovin’ Jim Cornette. It’s a great cast, and all involved are quite game and they all look like they had a blast making the film. I think the major failing is the overall television movie look of the film. It lacks that cinematic feel films like this need to have agency in the genre. It’s a watchable film, but it’s missing something the cast couldn’t provide.
Video for the Blu-ray is presented 1080/24p at 1.85:1 and it looks good. Colors are muted and saturated, fitting for the setting of the film’s timeline. Detail is good and there’re no artifacts. It’s a clean digital image. Sound is given in choice between a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and 2.0, with optional English subs. Both options are rich, obviously the 5.1 is more dynamic, but the 2.0 has some play as well.
The extras include nine deleted scenes amounting to seventeen minutes (nothing too impactful), a trailer and a collection of cast interviews (most likely used on social media to promote the film) with Marie Avgeropoulos (The 100) who played wrestler Elvira Snodgrass, Kelli Berglund (Heels) who played Nell Stewart, Gavin Casalegno (The Summer I Turned Pretty) who played Millie’s son Joe, Jr., Jim Cornette (wrestling expert featured in Dark Side of the Ring quite a bit) who played a NWA Commissioner, Adam Demos (Sex/Life) who played wrestling god Gorgeous George, Francesca Eastwood (Old) who played Mae Young, Josh Lucas, Emily Bett Rickards, and Deborah Ann Woll. The Casalegno, Cornette and Demos videos are showcased in vertical format.
- Todd Doogan