The Smashing Machine
Review: Overall, this was a really solid film that exceeded my expectations. Starring Dwayne Johnson as UFC legend Mark Kerr, I had some high expectations for The Rock’s performance but not for the film as a whole. The first film by a solo Safdie brother, this film was written, directed, produced, & edited by Benny Safdie, and there’s been some debate on which of the Safdie Brothers ‘brought the sauce’ to their films. Well I’ll just say Benny definitely brought the sauce here, but I bet Josh will also bring the sauce in December with ‘Marty Supreme.’ Anyways, enough about saucy brothers. Everything Benny Safdie did for this film was great. It was extremely well written, well edited, & one of the best directed films I’ve watched this year. The film had a really cool aesthetic, being shot on a combination of 16mm film, 70mm film, & VHS cameras, and the filming all looked really good. There were some really creative shots & several scenes that had some great camera movement. Also, I need to shoutout the music, because it was really well done too. I won’t spoil the end of the film, but I like the direction it took Mark Kerr, and how it gave supporting characters some great arcs. It really showed the transition for Mark and showing what really matters in his life. Also the very end of the film (that almost served as an epilogue) was a really nice finishing touch, letting the real Kerr step in for a scene.
High: The Rock did give a career performance here, fully disappearing into the role, like we’ve never seen him do before. Emily Blunt also gave a great supporting performance as Kerr’s girlfriend, Dawn. I wouldn’t be shocked if we see both of them nominated come awards season. But the standout performance for me was Ryan Bader as Mark Coleman. I’m not a huge UFC guy, really only being slightly familiar with Coleman, but I loved the way this film portrayed him. He was Kerr’s rock (good pun) & brought a ton of heart to this movie, so shoutout to Bader for a killer debut performance.
Low: I understand the film was really focused on Mark’s losses and the effects those had on him & it’s based on a true story so those losses are real. But I really think the early film should’ve emphasized his wins more & let us spend more time in those wins so that the losses hit the audience even harder.
Rating: 8/10
