The Smashing Machine review

THE SMASHING MACHINE: 

SORRY HULK, BUT DWAYNE JOHNSON’S THE NEW SMASHING MACHINE IN TOWN! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** ½ out of 4

A24

Dwayne Johnson in The Smashing Machine

 

            ROCK SMASH! Okay, got that out of the way…anyway, Dwayne Johnson (The Scorpion King, Fast & Furious franchise, Jumanji 2 and 3) transforms himself into MMA fighter, Mark Kerr in The Smashing Machine, the new film from A24 and director Benny Safdie (Heaven Knows What, Good Time, Uncut Gems). I’m no mega-expert on the Safdie Brothers’ work, but I loved their movie, Uncut Gems and hailed it as one of the best films I saw in 2019 so naturally I was curious to see what they would do next and in this year’s case we’re getting two movies from each of them with Josh Safdie’s Marty Supreme coming out this holiday season. 

            I don’t know anything about the real Mark Kerr or UFC in general, but what really drew me to this film aside from the director was that this was if I’m not mistaken, Dwayne Johnson’s first time giving a dramatic performance which I’m not against. Of course, I enjoy him as the Scorpion King or as Hobbs in the Fast & Furious movies, but actors usually known for lighthearted and goofy roles can go beyond what their audiences expect from them like when Jim Carrey and Adam Sandler transitioned from comedy to drama. 

            I had plenty of confidence in Johnson’s transition to drama as he seemed very passionate about this project when it was being made so, I gave him the benefit of the doubt, watched the film, and…wow! This is a really, really good movie though I don’t like it as much as Uncut Gems, but I was captivated throughout and mesmerized by Johnson’s uncanny performance as Kerr. 

            The film is set between 1997-2000 and follows mixed martial artist, Mark Kerr (Johnson) reaching the peak of his career, but soon faces several challenges along the way. He has a complicated relationship with his girlfriend, Dawn (Emily Blunt-Looper, Edge of Tomorrow, Oppenheimer; who had previously worked with Johnson on 2021’s Jungle Cruise), he’s addicted to opioid and goes through rehab, and faces all the physical and mental pains of preparing for the fight of his lifetime at the 2000 Pride Grand Prix. 

            The film also stars Ryan Bader as Mark Coleman, Bas Rutten as himself, Oleksandr Usyk as Igor Vovchanchyn, Satoshi Ishii as Enson Inoue, James Moontasri as Akira Shoji, Stephen Quadros as himself, Cyborg Abreu as Fábio Gurgel, Andre Tricoteux (Once Upon a Time, Deadpool, Warcraft) as Paul Varelans, and Marcus Auréllo as Mestre Hulk. 

            Overall, The Smashing Machine is a compelling and gritty sports biopic and a tour de force for Dwayne Johnson in the same boat as Brendan Fraser from The Whale (I just realized I went with another Mummy actor right there). I should make this clear, don’t expect this movie to focus entirely on the matches, they are in there, but the film focuses more on the domestic issues between Kerr and his girlfriend.

            It’s less like a sports biopic and more of a relationship drama which might throw people off if they only saw the trailers. The lack of fighting in the ring didn’t bother me too much as the relationship aspect of the film is interesting and both Johnson and Blunt are powerhouses here. 

            Dwayne Johnson is incredible in this movie as he’s almost unrecognizable with the hair and prosthetics on, sure he is playing a mixed martial artist given his wrestling background and portrays the charismatic sports star aspect well. But he is scaringly good in the dramatic and heavy moments whether it’s a conflict with Emily Blunt or his character’s struggles with addiction and rehab, he is simply fascinating to watch here in a very against-type performance. 

            Emily Blunt is also a standout as Dawn who constantly goes back and forth between loving and hating Mark, she’s there for emotional support while also not having any of Mark’s shit at the same time. Again, I don’t know anything about the real person, but I thought Blunt did a magnificent job as usual in this. 

            For the most part, I was invested in what I was watching, but I will admit there are times where the film drags not to the point where it became a complete slog, but I did start to check out a bit when there wasn’t any relationship tension or fighting in the ring going on. Definitely not like Uncut Gems which was a tension-filled rush from start to finish with absolutely zero low points during that film, but the occasionally slow pacing didn’t ruin the movie for me. 

            Despite a few punches to the face, The Smashing Machine is a solid sports biopic and relationship drama with a remarkable Dwayne Johnson performance that hopefully will lead to more acting roles like this from him. Honestly, whether you follow MMA or not, this film is worth checking out at least once on Johnson’s performance alone because he really is what makes the movie. 

            Sorry, Bruce Banner, but The Rock stole your thunder as the Smashing Machine!