Much has been made of Dwayne Johnson’s lead performance as real-life mixed martial arts fighter Mark Kerr. Critics have lauded his ability to move beyond his action movie appeal to portray a complex individual going through a difficult set of circumstances both professionally and personally, but it should hardly be surprising. Johnson has been a movie star for two decades now and he started his professional fighting career as the Rock in the more theatrical realm of professional wrestling, thus giving him actual experience as an actor, you might say. Moreover, the character’s most salient dramatic trait is his inherent goodness, which was also Johnson’s most noted attribute when he transitioned from the role of a pro wrestling heel to a soft-spoken likable screen hunk. He’s actually made for the part.

This quality is stressed right at the beginning. MMA, unlike the freestyle wrestling Kerr excelled in as an amateur and pro wrestling from which MMA naturally evolved as an entertainment, is really about how much actual punishment the body can take, and after Kerr debuts in the fledgling sport at an event in Brazil, he’s seriously bruised and battered, occasioning frequent visits to the doctor. In an early scene he’s confronted by an old woman who’s startled by the condition of his face, and he’s obliged to explain how it got that way. Despite her initial horror at what he does for a living, he wins her over because of his gentle, personable nature. This dynamic continually comes into play as his star rises in MMA and the injuries never let up. Kerr becomes hopelessly addicted to painkillers, which seriously puts his relationship to girlfriend Dawn (Emily Blunt), who has her own codependency problems, in jeopardy, finally resulting in a suicide attempt. 

These disturbing domestic episodes are juxtaposed with realistic recreations of bouts that take place all over the world, including quite a few in Japan, scenes that director Benny Safdie stages with admirable verisimilitude owing in no small part to Johnson’s extensive experience in the ring (or cage, as the case may be). Unlike his estranged brother Josh’s own recent sports movie, Marty Supreme, or the brothers’ previously jointly directed features, Benny’s The Smashing Machine takes no advantage of the comic potential of the subject at hand and comes across as a relentlessly brutal downer in the Cassavettes style. However, Cassavettes got his point across by providing context that reinforced the melodrama. Here, the protagonist is an infinitely nice guy who can’t quite put up with the nastiness of his job and what it does to his body and soul, but there’s not much else to the movie except his suffering. 

Opens May 15 in Tokyo at Toho Cinemas Nihonbashi (050-6868-5060), Toho Cinemas Hibiya (050-6868-5068), 109 Cinemas Premium Shinjuku (0570-060-109), Toho Cinemas Shinjuku (050-6868-5063), Human Trust Cinema Shibuya (03-5468-5551).

The Smashing Machine home page in Japanese

photo (c) 2025 Real Hero Rights LLC