"Beyond the Mat" is a straightforward documentary about professional wrestling, focusing on real people and events. It doesn’t shoehorn in modern identity politics, with the narrative mainly driven by personal struggles and behind-the-scenes drama, not by token representation or ideology. If anything, it’s a throwback to the days when storytelling just meant… telling the story.

The film addresses masculinity, family dynamics, and personal sacrifice, but does so honestly, reflecting the rough world of pro wrestling. It doesn’t attack religion, masculinity, or traditional values, instead, it highlights their challenges within a tough industry. Certainly not a sermon for woke dogma.

There’s no noticeable effort to villainize traditional values or viewpoints. Diverse personal stories are told, but there’s no push for ideological conformity. The film simply documents its subjects’ realities without judging old-school values.