Final Rating: 2.5/5
The Smashing Machine is a film with plenty of hype around it. It is written and directed by Benny Safdie, one half of the Safdie Brothers who due to unknown reasons fueled by rumours, have (for the time at least) ended their professional relationship after experiencing the highs of Good Time and Uncut Gems, two films that made them indie darlings and helped re-establish the dramatic careers of both Robert Pattinson and Adam Sandler.
To add gas to the fire, both brothers have highly anticipated movies coming out in 2025, with brother Josh releasing Marty Supreme a few months after The Smashing Machine goes wide. Both films are unconventional sports films with The Smashing Machine taking on mixed martial arts and Marty Supreme with table tennis. The Smashing Machine also is hoping to give credibility to its star Dwayne Johnson, who for years now has been playing safe one-note tough guy hero parts, and perhaps even an awards season run as his reward.
The Smashing Machine tells the story of Mark Kerr, a former MMA fighter and centering around his career from 1997-2000. While versions of mixed martial arts have existed for hundreds of years with competitions to find the best all around gladiator, the sport as it is known today really only began in the early 90’s. It was brutal, barely regulated and not fit for consumption other than in shady boxing gyms. Slowly as rules were added (no biting, hairpulling, eyegouging, or knees directly to the top of the head), promoters found a replacement for the waning interest in boxing as crowds still had a blood lust for seeing people really hit each other.
Just before the turn of the century, people like Mark Kerr, played by Dwayne Johnson, helped popularize the sport, aided by his infectious personality and a physique never before seen. We pick up the story as Mark, a former collegiate wrestler, is now a burgeoning star in the freestyle wrestling scene. What follows is mostly boilerplate sports movie arcs. Kerr is an unparalleled star, going undefeated match after match. But slowly the more he fights, the more pain he is in, and when Advil and Voltaren no longer cut it, he switches to opioids, where he quickly becomes an addict. From there he fights his addiction demons, while constantly fighting with his longtime girlfriend Dawn (Emily Blunt) and must face his toughest battles yet, both inside and outside the ring (and octagon).
As someone who generally does not care for sports films, due to the tropes of the genre, this film unfortunately was filled with them. Must like how Walk Hard: The Dewy Cox Story destroyed the musical biopic genre via satire (as much as it can slow down those Oscar-bait films), it’s hard to watch sports films without seeing the same thing time after time. Kerr is a good guy, trying to do his best, but when the self doubt and injuries start to pile up his demons take control. He fights with his longtime girlfriend with both of them being selfish, but he does not realize he is pushing her away as she just wants to be supportive. From there he must overcome addiction, convince people he is clean and get ready to mount a comeback. While we aren’t forced to watch a complete heroic turnaround, the film makes sure to leave a pleasant taste in our mouths by the end.
Speaking of his long suffering partner Dawn, Emily Blunt gives it all reminding us that the standout of The Devil Wears Prada, Sicario and The Young Victoria, still has the ability to turn in a great performance after spending most of the past decade in boxoffice schlock (no offensive to her work in Oppenheimer). Unfortunately she feels like the character of “Every Boxer’s Girlfriend From Every Movie About Boxing Ever” played by Heidi Gardner on Saturday Night Live, who is just sick and tired of the fighting and is going to take the kids to her sister’s. Once you have seen the recurring character, who of course looks exactly like Blunt in the film, it’s hard to take her or her arc seriously.
But the main selling point in this film is that Johnson, who only a few times in his career took interesting and creative acting risks (Southland Tales and Pain & Gain) was looking to rehab his image of a controlling movie star who has to be the hero and takes no risks. Working with a Safdie, playing a part that his physical stature matches with a complicated man as the heart should be a winning combination for Johnson. Unfortunately, while the film is competently made, it is not elevated by Johnson. He brings his natural charisma and of course is utterly committed to the fight choreography and physical demands of the role, but anytime intense emotion is needed, he wilts under the pressure.
There are two scenes, which should be at the centre of his Oscar campaign where he breaks down in tears, and instead of seeing the emotion, he covers his entire face with his hands as he loudly dryheaves. Whether or not this was a direction from Safdie or a Johnson choice, it straight up doesn’t work and just makes Johnson look like he is trying really, really hard to be sad and failing. He gets outmatched in every confrontation he has with Blunt that makes it look like an amateur stepping into the ring to take on a professional MMA fighter.
The fighting looks terrific, as Johnson with his own wrestling background alongside Ryan Bader who plays Kerr’s best friend and fellow fighter Mark Coleman (Bader himself is an MMA fighter, who doesn’t quite capture the magic of a non-professional performer the Safdie’s are known for getting, but handles himself adequately) and actual MMA legend Bas Rutten, who got famous for his home video self defense courses, playing himself as Kerr’s trainer. The era that Kerr fought in was barbaric and called the bloodiest sport and Safdie and cinematographer Maceo Bishop show us the violence, while cleverly hiding the worst aspects of the sport that would likely turn viewers off and make the film next to impossible to release wide in today’s theater going market.
The hair, makeup and prosthetic work on Johnson is fantastic, and as Kerr changes looks, he blends right in sometimes even making one of the biggest movie stars in the world unrecognizable. Emily Blunt looks fantastic with her fake nails, cat suits and voluminous hair, embodying the prototypical fighter’s girlfriend.
After seeing how Zac Efron rose to the occasion, giving the performance of a lifetime as Kevin Von Ehrich in the masterful The Iron Claw, it is the hope that Johnson could do the same. While this might be the role of a lifetime for the wrestler formerly known as The Rock, it still mostly misses the mark. The film feels its runtime of two hours, but it is an interesting enough watch that I didn’t feel cheated out of my time. Johnson is serviceable enough for the film, but the real missing ingredient might be Benny Safdie working with his brother Josh. Time will tell if Marty Supreme reaches higher highs or if the duo need to put aside any differences they have and work together for the betterment of cinema because The Smashing Machine is not Good Time or Uncut Gems quality.
The Smashing Machine was seen during the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival.
