On Wednesday, October 1st, TRR traveled to Silver Spring, Maryland for the AMC advanced screening of “The Smashing Machine” directed and written by Benny Safdie. Originally based on a 2002 documentary Smashing Machine: The Life and Times of Extreme Fighter Mark Kerr…Actor, producer, and founder Dwayne “Rock” Johnson is one of the leading cultural icons of the 21st century, portraying the legendary Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) & UFC pioneer fighter Mark Kerr, and let’s just say the hair and make-up teams definitely need to be nominated for future Oscars. Rock’s performance is truly believable in his raw portrayal of what happens behind the scenes during the late 90s when trying to live in the world of “fighting in the cage.” It’s an absolutely brutal, bloody sport, and the injuries are painful to watch at times on screen, especially hearing the sounds of the punches, broken bones, and kicks to the opponent’s bodies. It was jaw dropping when you found out how little they paid these Champions in their earlier fights.
Additionally, Rock’s moments of fighting the battle of addiction of substance abuse, but also with his love interest, Dawn Staples; played by the beautiful sassy Academy Award nominee Emily Blunt. Their on-screen chemistry was electric, but frustrating at times because I wanted to learn more of their earlier love history instead of jumping right into the next fighting matches. The film is about 123 minutes long, but there are various parts I felt like the story needed more background details in Mark Kerr’s life. He is a very complex character…spoiler alert: make sure to watch at the end of the film.
However, one of the film highlights was being introduced to Multi-weight class MMA championship title holder’s Ryan “Darth” Bader’s big screen acting debut; especially when he and the Rock share a hospital moment dealing with suicide ideologies. I find that watching these two huge fighters share their hearts on screen in a pivotal moment that sends a message to men everywhere that crying is not weak. Invisible wounds hurt the strongest most.
I highly recommend everyone to give this film their attention and cheer on Dwayne Rock Johnson’s most profound role yet. I firmly believe this is his “Rocky” movie quest for an Oscar nomination based on his physicality transformation and acting personality.
Final Grade: A
About The Author
