October 1, 2025
FILM: THE SMASHING MACHINE
DIRECTED BY: BENNY SAFDIE
STARRING: DWAYNE JOHNSON, EMILY BLUNT, RYAN BADER
RATING: 3 out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
As I started watching The Smashing Machine, starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as mixed-martial arts fighter Mark Kerr, it occurred to me how little of his work I’ve actually seen. I went through his IMDB page and discovered I’ve only seen him in Get Smart but have no memory of what kind of character he played. He’s hosted Saturday Night Live which I’m sure I’ve seen but that’s about it! Johnson has never made the kind of film that I’ve sought out, shown in a class, or been nominated for any significant award. Yet, he has such a large star presence that I just assumed more of his work had entered my orbit. Now comes The Smashing Machine, a film which received thunderous applause at the Venice Film Festival and won Benny Safdie the Best Director prize. Has something changed in Johnson’s world? I don’t mean to sound arrogant about it but I’ve just never been a fan of the kind of super charged, super hero films Johnson has tended to make. Has he finally made a “Dan” film?
Well, on the surface, the answer is yes. It’s a “prestige” drama about Kerr who we meet after his greatest successes, from 1997 until 2000. He’s on his way down and losing for the first time in his career. (Sounds like a crowd pleaser, right?!) When we first meet Johnson as Kerr his physical size stands out. He looks like the Incredible Hulk with carefully toned neck, shoulder and chest muscles. He’s huge! Johnson, in real life, has a handsome and seductive face. Here, with the help of prosthetics and some dark eyebrows, that look has become something more serious, almost menacing. Yet it is how Johnson conveys the essence of what internally makes Kerr tick that adds depth to his performance. Kerr comes across as a very kind soul. He’s steady and giving. He doesn’t demonstrate a lot of major highs and lows rather he’s sensitive and vulnerable. Johnson conveys all of this quite well.
His most intense scenes, outside of some major fights in the ring, are with Emily Blunt as the woman in his life, Dawn Staples. Blunt is a force to be reckoned with and it is her performance that really highlights the film for me. Dawn helps train Kerr while they have, at the start, a seemingly very loving relationship. The character is a caretaker who knows how to be there for Kerr much to her own detriment. When Johnson and Blunt fight during their most intense scenes, it feels real and raw. They feel like a couple that has been together for years and know exactly how to hit each other’s buttons. Blunt infuses her work here with intensity and fearlessness while also communicating Dawn’s own personal needs. It’s a great performance, which should be Oscar-nominated.
Some might come into The Smashing Machine thinking it is another sports movie within the boxing/wrestling sub-genre. It has a few intense “in the ring” scenes but it’s not really about winning. Safdie makes the interesting choice to showcase Kerr while he is heading down from success. As such, those looking for a “winning” story might be disappointed. Compared to greater films like Raging Bull, Rocky, and The Wrestler, this one feels quieter with less major narrative swings. Those films also offer flashier editing and camera work which isn’t emphasized here at all.
Some have billed this as a film about Kerr’s descent into opioid addition. While some of that is infused into the script it’s surprisingly not the main focus of the story. This could have been a film about the drugs that brought an athlete down but it’s not that at all. I don’t necessarily think the film is better for this choice though. As bad as the opioid crisis has been, it seems almost irresponsible not to depict what Kerr went through with more detail. It’s suggested that he loved the thrill of winning in the past and perhaps the associated high is what opioids offered him but the film doesn’t spend much time exploring that.
It’s a film that is fairly enveloping but more a showcase for Johnson’s transformation and Blunt’s top-notch work. I don’t know that this will be enough to land it in the cannon of film history but it’s an interesting undertaking for sure.
The Smashing Machine opens in theaters this week.
FILM: THE SMASHING MACHINE
DIRECTED BY: BENNY SAFDIE
STARRING: DWAYNE JOHNSON, EMILY BLUNT, RYAN BADER
RATING: 3 out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
As I started watching The Smashing Machine, starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as mixed-martial arts fighter Mark Kerr, it occurred to me how little of his work I’ve actually seen. I went through his IMDB page and discovered I’ve only seen him in Get Smart but have no memory of what kind of character he played. He’s hosted Saturday Night Live which I’m sure I’ve seen but that’s about it! Johnson has never made the kind of film that I’ve sought out, shown in a class, or been nominated for any significant award. Yet, he has such a large star presence that I just assumed more of his work had entered my orbit. Now comes The Smashing Machine, a film which received thunderous applause at the Venice Film Festival and won Benny Safdie the Best Director prize. Has something changed in Johnson’s world? I don’t mean to sound arrogant about it but I’ve just never been a fan of the kind of super charged, super hero films Johnson has tended to make. Has he finally made a “Dan” film?
Well, on the surface, the answer is yes. It’s a “prestige” drama about Kerr who we meet after his greatest successes, from 1997 until 2000. He’s on his way down and losing for the first time in his career. (Sounds like a crowd pleaser, right?!) When we first meet Johnson as Kerr his physical size stands out. He looks like the Incredible Hulk with carefully toned neck, shoulder and chest muscles. He’s huge! Johnson, in real life, has a handsome and seductive face. Here, with the help of prosthetics and some dark eyebrows, that look has become something more serious, almost menacing. Yet it is how Johnson conveys the essence of what internally makes Kerr tick that adds depth to his performance. Kerr comes across as a very kind soul. He’s steady and giving. He doesn’t demonstrate a lot of major highs and lows rather he’s sensitive and vulnerable. Johnson conveys all of this quite well.
His most intense scenes, outside of some major fights in the ring, are with Emily Blunt as the woman in his life, Dawn Staples. Blunt is a force to be reckoned with and it is her performance that really highlights the film for me. Dawn helps train Kerr while they have, at the start, a seemingly very loving relationship. The character is a caretaker who knows how to be there for Kerr much to her own detriment. When Johnson and Blunt fight during their most intense scenes, it feels real and raw. They feel like a couple that has been together for years and know exactly how to hit each other’s buttons. Blunt infuses her work here with intensity and fearlessness while also communicating Dawn’s own personal needs. It’s a great performance, which should be Oscar-nominated.
Some might come into The Smashing Machine thinking it is another sports movie within the boxing/wrestling sub-genre. It has a few intense “in the ring” scenes but it’s not really about winning. Safdie makes the interesting choice to showcase Kerr while he is heading down from success. As such, those looking for a “winning” story might be disappointed. Compared to greater films like Raging Bull, Rocky, and The Wrestler, this one feels quieter with less major narrative swings. Those films also offer flashier editing and camera work which isn’t emphasized here at all.
Some have billed this as a film about Kerr’s descent into opioid addition. While some of that is infused into the script it’s surprisingly not the main focus of the story. This could have been a film about the drugs that brought an athlete down but it’s not that at all. I don’t necessarily think the film is better for this choice though. As bad as the opioid crisis has been, it seems almost irresponsible not to depict what Kerr went through with more detail. It’s suggested that he loved the thrill of winning in the past and perhaps the associated high is what opioids offered him but the film doesn’t spend much time exploring that.
It’s a film that is fairly enveloping but more a showcase for Johnson’s transformation and Blunt’s top-notch work. I don’t know that this will be enough to land it in the cannon of film history but it’s an interesting undertaking for sure.
The Smashing Machine opens in theaters this week.