PREMISE
The story of mixed-martial arts champion Mark Kerr as he battles addiction, a toxic relationship, and the pressures of maintaining his status as a world-class pugilist.
THE GOOD STUFF
THE ROCK- Is this shameless Oscar bait? Sure. But just because it’s shameless doesn’t mean it’s not excellent. Mark Kerr is a very real man who had very real demons, and I can’t imagine that playing him was an easy task, even if you have the physical stature of somebody like Dwayne Johnson. There’s a depth of emotion that he had to hit to do honor by this real-life man… and by God, he did it. A lot can be said about how against type this is for him. But the real glory of this performance comes at the end of the film, when they actually show the real Mark Kerr. It is at that point where (in my opinion) it went from thinking that Johnson simply did a really good job to…“oh s*** he really nailed this.”
Is this the surefire Oscar nomination that everybody is saying it is? Don’t know. Oscar season has just started; let’s not get in over our heads yet. But if he did get nominated, I don’t see why anyone should be mad at that. This is nothing short of Oscar-worthy.
EMILY BLUNT- The only sure-fire Oscar nomination it should come from this movie is in the Supporting Actress category with this performance. This movie deals in part with a seriously toxic relationship between Mark Kerr and Dawn Staples. Though both characters share their fair share of the blame for what gets so out of hand, the visceral toll of the relationship is entirely within this performance, even more so than in Johnson’s.
At some point in a seriously toxic, long-standing relationship, one may begin to question who they are without the toxic person in their life, and/or they become so used to the superficial lifestyle they’ve been living that they can’t imagine life without it. One can feel suffocated. A lot is internalized, and you can see the damage viscerally. Emily Blunt’s performance in this movie is the physical manifestation of that experience. Absolutely brilliant.
THE MAKEUP WORK- Kazu Hiro is his name. That is the man who is most responsible for the makeup work in this movie, and a man who will most definitely be walking to the stage this upcoming February to accept his third Oscar. This is the man who turned Gary Oldman into Winston Churchill, Charlize Theron into Megyn Kelly, and Bradley Cooper into Leonard Bernstein. I didn’t really know his name until this, but I’m pretty sure he’s the best in the world at what he does, because Dwayne Johnson is basically transformed here. I didn’t understand how impressive this prosthetic work was until the moment in the film where Mark Kerr shaves his head like The Rock, and it still doesn’t look like The Rock.
BAS AND BADER- Respect must be had for these two performances. It’s just really strange to watch both of these men (who I grew up watching in the UFC) do excellent work in a movie like this. Ruten has done movies before and shown some chops, but they were comedies, to be fair. Here he is playing himself, so there’s no stretch. But it still is a nice performance to be had.
Ryan Bader does a very good job for what he is given and should be considered a notable breakout performance of 2025. This man is not an actor. He is still very much an active mixed martial artist, but for those who may not know who he is, they might be wondering which movies he’s been in before this, and that should say something. The Safdie Brothers as a whole are known for their inspired casting choices. This might be the most impressive one that they’ve had so far.
THE BAD STUFF
THE ENDING- Super abrupt. It’s not a bad ending per se; I understand that the ending they chose is indeed a close to this story. But it isn’t satisfying by any means.
THE UGLY STUFF
THE MMA- The only MMA movie I can think of that I can compare this to is, of course, WARRIOR from 2011. Warrior is a movie (like this one) that tells a deep emotional story while blending numerous MMA action sequences. What made the warrior that much greater, however, was that they took the time to show the sport dynamically. Amidst the incredible acting, writing, and storytelling in that film, it also made me feel as if I understood MMA just a little bit better simply by watching it. That does not happen here.
This movie does for mixed martial arts what the film magazine dreams (released earlier this year) does for bodybuilding. It shows the sport as something that you have to be mentally ill to want to partake in, rather than something that you can fall in love with.
**************
By the end of 2025, we will understand which one of the Safdie Brothers is the alpha when it comes to filmmaking. Marty Supreme is a heavily hyped film coming out in December, directed by his brother Josh, and it looks a lot glossier and more Hollywood than this does. Whatever that film will be, I can say without question that the smashing machine feels like a film the brothers would collaborate on.
There is gritty stuff here, a very indie-like spirit, and a career-best performance from the leading actor. As far as sports movies go this is middle of the pack. That doesn’t mean it’s not a good film. Benny Safdie isn’t a fantastic directorial talent.Â
THE SMASHING MACHINE is in theaters now.
