Reviews
The Smashing Machine
The Smashing Machine arrives with a wave of awards-season buzz and higher expectations than nearly any recent sports biopic. Yet, despite its ambition and the anticipation surrounding it, the film struggles to fully meet the towering hype it has generated.
The film follows Mark Kerr, a former wrestler turned early pioneer of mixed martial arts, whose rise helped propel the sport into the mainstream. Rather than attempting to cover his entire career, the film narrows its focus to a turbulent three-year stretch from 1997 to 2000. During this period, Kerr faced not only grueling battles in the ring but also personal struggles: an escalating opioid addiction, a strained relationship with his partner Dawn (Emily Blunt), and the chaos of fame. All of this builds toward the climactic Pride tournament in Japan, a landmark event that gathers the world’s top fighters onto one stage.
The film is written and directed by Benny Safdie, marking his first project since the widely publicized split from his brother and longtime collaborator, Josh. While a sports biopic might seem like an unexpected detour from his previous work, Safdie brings a fresh, offbeat perspective to a genre that too often succumbs to cliché.
The Smashing Machine rises or falls on the shoulders of its star, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, in his portrayal of Mark Kerr. Against my personal expectations, Johnson delivers a performance few would have predicted, disappearing into the role with a depth and vulnerability unlike anything in his previous work. His physical transformation makes him completely unrecognisable for all the right reasons, adding another level of awe to the performance. It’s a career-best turn that more than justifies the acclaim he has already received and the recognition still to come. Hopefully, this is a sign of what’s to come for Johnson and not just a one off.
Emily Blunt co-stars as Kerr’s partner Dawn, delivering a solid performance that anchors many of the film’s emotional beats. I was also surprised to see how prominent Mark Coleman (Ryan Bader) became in the story, and despite his limited acting experience, he holds his own convincingly.
Like most A24 projects, The Smashing Machine is a visual joy to behold. I lost count of how many times I found myself gazing in awe at the screen. Safdie deserves a great deal of credit for authentically capturing the look and feel of America and Japan in the late ’90s, creating an atmosphere that feels immersive and believable.
A central draw of any sports biopic is the action in the ring, and The Smashing Machine both succeeds and falters in this regard. The fights, of which there are plenty, are choreographed spectacularly and feel thoroughly believable, giving a real sense of the pain the fighters experience. However, they are fleeting. Multiple rounds and the big fights at the Pride tournament are over almost as soon as they begin, a real letdown for me.
The film’s treatment of Kerr’s opioid addiction suffers similar pacing issues. What could have been a crucial, emotionally resonant point of his story is quickly glossed over. One moment we are with Kerr in the hospital, and within minutes he has left rehab a changed man. Had the audience been allowed to linger in the grief and pain that addiction brings, the overall feeling of the movie would have been far stronger.
Instead, the film spends excessive time on Kerr’s relationship with Dawn. While undoubtedly a key component of his journey, the tone shifts from a sports biopic to more of a relationship drama, something that I think will turn off viewers expecting a deeper dive into the fighting and Kerr’s personal struggles.
Overall, The Smashing Machine is a compelling sports biopic, albeit one marked by multiple flaws, and ultimately a minor disappointment given the pre-release awards hype surrounding it.
