Last night I had the distinct privilege of being invited to an advanced premier showing of The Smashing Machine starring Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt. My day job is teaching people chokes and throws at SBG New Braunfels Brazilian Jiu Jitsu School, and I was able to bring a number of coaches with me. What follows is my amateur attempt at a movie review. I’m nobody’s poet, but I’ll endeavor not to mangle the English language as I parse what I saw last night.
Before watching the movie, Bas Rutten, former UFC Champ and co-star in the film, looked at me and said, “It’s not a Rocky movie; it’s a drama.” That’s a good summation if you costar in the film and happen to be a humble person like Bas, who is exactly as cool as you might imagine him to be in person if you’ve never met him. He’s Bas. However, Bas’s humility undersells the total impact of this film. It’s not just a drama; it’s a fantastic drama; it does justice to portraying the human condition in all of its complexity.
The film centers on the story of Mark Kerr, a UFC Hall of Fame fighter who you may not know and can easily be forgiven for not knowing about him. He was an excellent fighter and a very successful collegiate wrestler, but he is not particularly well known to casual fight fans. So why make a movie about him? He was a unique guy, had a unique outlook; within just a few moments of dialogue, you know he’s a bit different. He has a simple way about him that is endearing in its optimism but obviously immature as a reasonable outlook. Around the beginning of the film, he tells a reporter he cannot imagine what it would be like to lose because he’s never lost. He appears childlike in outlook despite possessing physical power far exceeding most mortal men. This is what the film centers around, dealing with loss. Dealing with the complexities of human relationships with all the best intentions and motivations while simultaneously possessing all of the things that make us weak as humans. Everyone in this film is a little broken, a little wrong, but fundamentally relatable, which is why the film hits so hard. Mark Kerr’s relationship struggles with his girlfriend, played by Emily Blunt, are extreme because he’s doing no-rules fighting as a context, but the dialogue and the emotional beats are instantly recognizable. After the movie, all of those in attendance agreed that the relationships were eerily reminiscent of something they had experienced at some point. Enough to make you feel pain but also empathy.
I don’t want this to be a spoiler review, so I’ll drift away from too much of the content and just rattle off some standout aspects of the film that impressed me.
Directing:
Benny Safdie did an amazing job of recreating the Pride fighting events. My understanding is that he used all the same cameras and lighting from those shows. It was immersive to the point of feeling like you were there instead of just watching at home. The camera went from locker room to fight to locker room to home in a manner that felt lived. He captured the downtime between moments of great excitement without making it feel artsy or forced. This is a man’s artsy film; it’s charged with moments of nigh-virulent masculinity that just ooze off the screen, but it sets up the emotional challenges so brilliantly.
Actors:
Dwayne Johnson: I’ve always been favorably inclined towards him, but he’s never been someone that makes me want to see a movie just because he’s in it. That being said, this was the best performance of his career. He made Mark Kerr feel like a full human being. He got on my nerves as intended. He pulled on my heartstrings as intended.
Emily Blunt: My wife is a bigger fan of her than I am, but I’ve always liked her work. This was also her best performance. She should win awards for this performance. She was the girlfriend of Christmas past for me in haunting ways, but I also felt for her completely. A great portrayal of a smoke show with serious insecurities trying to love and be loved with every bit of human frailty mixed in. She walked a thin line between “what the hell is wrong with you” and “oh, I get it, you’re just young and want to feel loved.” Brilliant performance.
Bas Rutten: He played himself, and I can’t imagine anyone else having played the role convincingly. Bas playing himself anchored the whole piece for a serious MMA fan. His voice and personality were an integral part of that time period. What might surprise you is he didn’t phone it in. There’s a particularly poignant scene where Bas gives vulnerability and depth to the physically debilitating cost of cage fighting that felt so real that it was one of the best scenes in the film. Bas has done a number of other films, but he’s still largely known as a fighter. As a champion. Anyone who watches that scene has to add “actor” to his list of accomplishments, and that would require no caveat or asterisk. Powerful stuff.
Ryan Bader: When MMA star Ryan Bader showed up as UFC/Pride champion Mark Coleman, I assumed it was going to be a cameo of sorts, but it was a role of significance, and Bader really surprised me. He was great. I think if you didn’t know he was a fighter, you wouldn’t have suspected that. A number of other fighters showed up in the film, and there was no weak link. I would chalk that up to director and actor excellence.
