If you’re a fan of wrestling, you’ve probably heard or have watched a segment featuring the Canadian wrestling legends Mad Dog and Butcher Vachon. In the documentary, The Last Villains: Mad Dog and the Butcher we get a behind the curtains look at one of wrestling’s early wrestling families as the last surviving member of the Vachon wrestling legacy Paul “The Butcher” Vachon recounts his story from a young boy to the successful career he enjoyed at his brother, Maurice “Mad Dog” Vachon’s side in professional wrestling.

I remember watching these wrestling legends when I was just a kid during their final years as they stood side by side with such greats as Andre The Giant, Mean Gene Oakerland and even Hulk Hogan on Maple Leaf Wrestling after my Saturday morning cartoons were finished. I often thought about how cool it was that someone who grew up just a short drive from where I lived was on TV wrestling these iconic and larger than life characters.

Paul Vachon is a wonderful story teller. He’s published multiple book during his life. One in particular, which this documentary us focused on, When Wrestling Was Real. In it he recounts his days as a young boy growing up in a busy and farm house in Quebec and his journey in the world of professional wrestling before it became the weekly theatrical soap opera that we see now.

While there’s much to celebrate about the Vachon’s legacy, there’s also a great deal of sadness. The life of a professional is often filled with a great deal of turmoil and the Vachon Family was not spared. One particularly heart wrenching moment The Butcher talks about his little sister Vivian was a real trailblazer for women’s professional wrestling. He tells the story of waiting at his parents house for her to arrive for a visit and being late when the police arrive to inform the family that she and her daughter were both lost to a drunk driver. Even the moment he speaks of his daughter Luna, who many wrestling fans might remember as being Gangrel’s wife or the escort for another wrestling great Bam Bam Bigelow.

You even get the sense that while he doesn’t necessarily express it, there’s a great deal of regret to the time lost with family. In one scene he’s at a family reunion and speaking with his estranged son who he barely knows and the level of discomfort is quite apparent as they barely even look at one another. I personally find that to be very sad.

I really enjoyed this documentary from the very beginning. The presentation and interviews with Paul are wonderful and well conducted and it was really nice to see that he’s still so energetic in his golden years despite being hunched over from the wear and tear he’s put himself through over the years.

Kaneda