He Becomes THE SMASHING MACHINE

 

Jeri Jacquin

Coming to theatres this Friday from writer/director Benny Safdie and A24 is the story of a life in pain because of THE SMASHING MACHINE.

It is 1997 and mixed martial arts fighter Mark Kerr (Dwayne Johnson) is part of the Japanese matches by Pride that has him travelling and winning. There are basically no rules in the ring and that is where he finds his joy. A relatively new sport, Kerr finds himself in places like Brazil and Japan. A problem is, Kerr is dealing with health issues that are causing him to struggle. If that isn’t enough, slightly off girlfriend Dawn (Emily Blunt) caters to him but has issues of insecurity of her own.

Keeping an eye on his friend is Mark Coleman (real-life UFC fighter Ryan Bader) who is also a UFC fighter and is always there for him. When Kerr begins to spiral down, he decides it’s time to make a change which annoys Dawn causing her too emotionally spiral. Seeking out trainer Bas (Bas Rutten) to get back into shape for the championship, Kerr gives it his all and returns to Japan with Coleman as they both reach for the top prize.

Johnson as Kerr is nearly unrecognizable. If it wasn’t for the voice you can’t disguise, no one would know it was him. Prosthetic designer Kazu Hiro knew exactly what he was doing when trying to hide the actor to allow him to portray Kerr inviting us into the story. Johnson gives a performance that could easily lead him to accepting a few awards. He is obviously comfortable in the ring, looks the part and gives the audience an emotional time in Kerr’s life.

Blunt as Dawn is a woman dealing with her own insecurities and jealousy’s that are a bit scary. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a role where Blunt has played a woman whose emotions jump off from loving to dark so quickly. Those emotions, I felt, are nothing more than gaslighting a nice guy and like it or not, Dawn gave me the skeevies. Bader as Coleman gives Kerr the support he needs before a fight and knows that something is wrong. Even so, he has a goal of his own that matches that of his friend. I just loved the interactions between Johnson and Bader.

Other cast includes Lyndsey Gavin as Elizabeth Coleman, Satoshi Ishii as Enson Inoue, Yoko Hamamura as Kazuyki Fujita, Paul Cheng as Masaaki Satake, Cyborg Abreu as Fabio Gurgel, Andre Tricoteux as Paul Varelans, and Stephen Quadros.

A24 is an independent entertainment company that specializes in film and television production based in New York City. Films such as A GLIMPSE INSIDE THE MIND OF CHARLES SWAN III, the amazing EX MACHINA, ROOM and THE WITCH. Many of their films can be found on DirecTV Cinema and Amazon Prime. For more information, please visit www.a24films.com.

The film is based on The Smashing Machine: The Life and Time of Extreme Fighter Mark Kerr. Kerr was a former wrestler and mix martial artist winning tournaments, championships, winning belts and medals. In 2002, the streaming service HBO did a documentary of the same name that outlined his MMA career. Kerr was inducted in the ADCC Hall of Fame in 2022.

Johnson carries the film taking on the multiple complexities of Kerr’s real-life history. Taking on the challenge of hiding ‘The Rock’ behind prosthetics to play this character, Johnson is able to dig deep into the life of a man whose career was being pummeled for the entertainment of others. Let us not forget that Kerr and Coleman made very little money compared to MMA fighters today. All of that coming from a large muscular man who is overflowing with kindness towards every person he meets. Even when dealing with his addiction, he doesn’t come to anger – except where Dawn is concerned.

Call Blunt’s character Kerr’s weakness but he can not seem to let her go but he knows when he must push her away. That’s the chemistry between Johnson and Blunt. Watching these two characters with their flaws find themselves in the midst of their own relationship madness that Kerr can not get out of his mind. Here, we have a bit of Rocky Balboa (ROCKY), Randy ‘The Ram’ Robinson (THE WRESTLER) and Billy Flynn (THE CHAMP) and now THE SMASHING MACHINE can absolutely hang their sign up as a film that should be recognized.

Safdie is known for working with his brother Josh on film such as UNCUT GEMS, and this is his first solo as director. The Venice Film Festival has already seen fit to award Safdie a Silver Lion for Best Director and Johnson received a fifteen-minute standing ovation that brought him to tears. It seems only fitting as not only did the film tell the story, but it kept true to everything of the late 1990s and 2000s. The costuming, hair, makeup, clothing, cars – all add to layer of the story Safdie wants us to join him in hearing.

The story is riveting, heart-breaking, informative and it is impossible to look away even for a second. The friendship of Kerr and Coleman is wonderful and to know their history, along with the history of Pride, the UFC, MMA and those who began the sport is so well done. This film is an opportunity to experience one of their stories. This is definitely a must-see film for what Safdie, Johnson, Blunt and Bader bring to the screen.  

In the end – it is the true story of a legend!