The Smashing Machine (15)

Mark Kerr makes an indelible impact at his first MMA tournament in Sao Paulo by pummelling every opponent who strays into the ring. He showcases his muscular talents at the Pride Fighting Championships in Japan, supported by girlfriend Dawn. His aura of invincibility is shattered when Igor Vovchanchyn overpowers him in a bout in Japan. Mark tumbles down a rabbit hole of painkiller abuse and eventually enters rehab, emerging clean and committed to rebuilding his strength and confidence.

LondonNet Film Review

The Smashing Machine (15) Film Review from LondonNet

Dwayne Johnson muscles his way into possible Oscar contention in writer-director Benny Safdie’s lightweight biopic of a sports star, who was considered one of the fiercest bare-knuckle fighters on the planet in his heyday. Focusing on the period between 1997 and 2000 when Ohio-born wrestler and mixed martial artist Mark Kerr rose to fame, The Smashing Machine is an underdog story elevated by Safdie’s trademark documentary-style direction and stellar performances…

With the aid of impressive prosthetics, Johnson vanishes completely beneath the sweat-glistened façade of his flawed trailblazer, who becomes addicted to opioids as he punishes his battered and bruised body beyond the normal limits of human endurance. Johnson catalysts electrifying on-screen chemistry with Emily Blunt as Mark’s model girlfriend, who begs him to get into rehab then bitterly resents being sidelined when he relies on a sponsor to guide him through recovery. Their compelling portrayal of a couple perpetually on the precipice of a blazing argument hits harder than a script that defies expectations more than once en route to a conventional tournament showdown.

Safdie blurs boundaries between dramatisation and recreation with a supporting cast of real-life MMA stars and boxers including Ryan Bader and Mark’s trainer Bas Rutten, playing himself. The film opens with Mark (Johnson) making an indelible impact at his first MMA tournament in Sao Paulo by pummelling every opponent who strays into the ring. The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), which pits competitors with different martial arts skills against each other, is still in its infancy. Consequently, Mark showcases his muscular talents at the Pride Fighting Championships in Japan.

He is supported by girlfriend Dawn (Blunt), who repeatedly distracts Mark from concentrating on his training. His aura of invincibility is shattered when Igor Vovchanchyn (Oleksandr Usyk) overpowers him in a bout in Japan. Mark tumbles down a rabbit hole of painkiller abuse and eventually enters rehab, emerging clean and committed to rebuilding his strength and confidence with trainer Bas Rutten. In the interim, good friend Mark Coleman (Bader) rediscovers his form and is one of the favourites to claim the 200,000 US dollars prize purse at the next Pride Fighting Championship. Kerr’s physically gruelling revival puts him on a collision course with his countryman, presuming Dawn’s mood swings don’t derail preparations.

The Smashing Machine is a confidently constructed portrait of a mild-mannered and softly spoken brawler, whose Achilles’s heel was believing that he could never be bested in the ring. Bader offers convincing support and the film avoids predictable tugs of heartstrings until closing images of the real-life Kerr and some of the people who moulded him. Safdie grapples with Mark’s incredible story and maintains a firm grip for extended periods of this two-hour bout.

– Jo Planter