Welcome back everyone to a brand new review, but this time instead of looking at lost dogs, we will be going into the world of WWE wrestling. Now I myself am not too familiar with the sport, even if I know a number of the wrestlers themselves like of course Dwayne Johnson, John Cena, and a couple more. That does include Paige, whom this movie is about. I was not too familiar with her before the trailer for this movie came out, and when I saw it I actually thought the movie looked really good, and the reviews seemed to confirm that. After finally watching it I can confirm that that is indeed very true.
Saraya-Jade Bevis is just a girl born into a family of wrestlers along with her brother Zak living in Norwich. They were taught about the sport early on, and even help train kids to become wrestlers, and work toward their promotion to one day get into the WWE. They get their shot one day when a representative calls them after seeing one of their wrestling videos, and offers them a chance to audition for the WWE’s NXT development program. They both plan on making it in together, though things don’t go according to plan when the program’s Coach, Hutch Morgan, only picks Saraya. Refusing to accept it at first, Zak tells her its okay, and that she can go to Florida to train for the NXT. Upon arriving in Florida, Saraya who chooses Paige as her new ring name, realizes just how tough this is, and struggles to keep up with the intense, and extensive training put upon her. Meanwhile things aren’t good for Zak either as he has trouble coping with his lost opportunity, and becomes jealous of Paige, and blames her from taking his dream from him. Can Paige be able to prove herself worthy of the WWE, and achieve her dream despite all of the challenges ahead, while try to make peace with her brother again?
Now this may sound like your typical inspirational sports biopic, with the same kind of cliches you would expect from something like it. While it sort of is, since there’s nothing that surprising or unexpected about the proceedings going along as you would expect, it does however make up for that with its very strong execution, and details. It succeeds very well in making the audience care for our main character, and wanting her to succeed, which makes the scenes where she is struggling, or figuring out something that much more effective in the process. Another thing that stands out in the film is the script written by Stephen Merchant which is extremely well written, with the dialogue being poignant, and emotional or hilarious (there are some great lines that made me laugh hard), and moving at the same time, and there is just something so authentic about it that makes it work so well. If you could not tell from the title family plays an important part in the film, and there is a nice theme present of how family should always support each other no matter what, and how they should always be happy for each other. The family dynamic is so good here, and feels so real, that I was heavily invested in it (heck the film is usually at its best when its just Paige’s family talking to each other). While it does focus mainly on the family, so much so that other aspects like Zak’s wrestling class aren’t really looked into that much, it still fires on all cylinders. As for the whole WWE aspect, well I’d say that this film is a great introduction to the sport, as it not only looks into the whole competitive aspect, but also a bit of the business part of the equation, and how that works like how the wrestlers are marketed, and how they appear is important for watchers to support them.
Stephan Merchant also directs the films, and it is competently made, even if there is nothing that makes it look or feel different from other similar films of its type. The wrestling matches are fun to watch, and are pretty exciting, even if their not as good or memorable as other films before it, but then again this film is mainly focused on the family dynamic, and theme more than anything else. And that dynamic would need some capable actors to pull it off, which this film most certainly has. Lets start with Florence Pugh who plays Paige, and she does a wonderful job, truly making the character into someone whom the audience wants to see succeed, and reach her full potential. Her arc of trying to become what the people want her to be, when she should just be her, was also a highlight, and made the character feel relatable as a result. She also has a fully developed relationship with Zak, who is played excellently here by Jack Lowden, as a brother who truly wants to chase his dream even if he may not succeed, but that truly loves his sister, and will support her all the way. Adding to that dynamic are Lena Headey, and Nick Frost as Paige, and Zak’s parents, Julia, and Patrick, respectively. They are also fantastic playing the roles of two wrestler parents with ease, and both of them delivering some of the funniest lines in the film (this is especially true of Frost). Vince Vaughn is of course awesome here, playing a coach who just wants whats best for his trainee’s, and who wants them to be the best they can be. Not only are his remarks to his students very on point, and hilarious, but he is also one of the more interesting characters, and is a different type of coach character than your used to seeing. And for those of you who were curious, sorry but despite appearing prominently in the marketing, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson only has a handful of scenes (and they were the ones in the trailer), but he makes the most of what he is given, and plays his usual charming, and charismatic self, and even stating how important his former career in wrestling really means to him. The other supporting players are all fine, even if they also do not get much screentime they still help out well, and help support the main players a lot. Also for those WWE fans, look out for some surprise cameos in the film because there are a few.
While nothing particularly new is done here, what is here is quite impressive. Fighting With My Family is a very good biopic that also serves a nice introduction to the WWE, and to the sport of wrestling in general. I was invested throughout, and cared for the characters greatly, and I even learned a thing or two about the sport in the process. I would highly recommend it to those who just want to have a good time, and watch a truly inspirational film. While I’m not sure how much of the film actually happened, and it probably only scratches the surface of the achievements Paige would go on to achieve, I’m sure there are a ton of documentaries dealing with that information, so this works best as an introduction to the famous wrestler, and she was before she became who she is today.
Rating: B+
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