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What: “Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows”

Where: A&E; Network

When: Sunday, 10 p.m.-midnight

There is a lot to laugh at in the world of professional wrestling. It’s not often you get to see a man with a ponytail on top of his head being led to the ring by a 50-year-old toothless bodyguard who probably hasn’t seen his toes since 1983.

But for those of you (like my wife) who laugh at pro wrestling and can’t understand why anyone would ever spend five minutes watching it, do yourself a favor and tune in to this program.

Bret Hart was a star in the World Wrestling Federation and had a 20-year, $20-million contract until the owner of the company, Vince McMahon, told him to seek an offer from his competition. It seemed McMahon could no longer afford Hart’s contract. So Hart signed with the rival World Championship Wrestling. But there was one problem. Hart was the WWF heavyweight champion, and he didn’t want to lose the belt in the manner McMahon scripted for him.

So, for the first time in more than 15 years, a pro wrestling match had a legitimate ending, without a scripted finish. At least it wasn’t scripted the way Hart thought it was going to be. McMahon and Hart’s opponent, Shawn Michaels, got together with the referee and effectively stole the belt from Hart in the middle of a multimillion-dollar pay-per-view telecast.

This documentary, which has drawn rave reviews at film festivals around the country, tells the story of Hart’s betrayal. It also gives one good example why wrestlers get mad when you call what they do fake. In one match shown on film, Hart is thrown from the ring as planned, but lands incorrectly. He breaks six ribs and crushes his sternum. Scripted? Yes. Fake injury? No.

This fascinating documentary takes you behind the curtain and gives you a glimpse into what these men do. You might not walk away a wrestling fan, but you will walk away impressed. And next time, you might not laugh quite so hard.