"Working with blockbuster actor Dwayne Johnson, who, shapeshifting into the role of fighter Mark Kerr, is even more bulked up than usual, Safdie dramatizes an early 2000s time when MMA was in a transitional phase, with its fighters touring internationally on a loosely regulated circuit where the purses weren't so huge, there was still a camaraderie among fighters, and the rules felt a bit slippery."
"At the same time, the arc of Kerr's relationship with his now ex-wife Dawn Staples - who goes from cheering Kerr on to annoyance with his increasing self-absorption, focus on the sport and opioid addiction - becomes progressively darker and much more developed than in the documentary; The Smashing Machine 's biggest gut punch, and its greatest scene, is an emotional one that occurs within the walls of the couple's Phoenix apartment."
Benny Safdie's film centers on fighter Mark Kerr, played by Dwayne Johnson, and recreates early-2000s MMA when fighters toured a loosely regulated international circuit, purses were small, and camaraderie mixed with slippery rules. The film balances the visceral excitement of violent matches with intimate portrayals of fighter relationships, including Kerr's rivalry and friendship with Mark Coleman (Ryan Bader) and the darker arc of Kerr's marriage to Dawn Staples, whose frustration grows with his self-absorption and opioid addiction. The filmmaking blends documentary-like camerawork by Maceo Bishop with shifts from 16mm to 65mm and a dreamy score by Nala Sinephro, yielding empathy and an elegiac perspective on sport and life.
Read at Filmmaker Magazine
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