Editor’s note: This review contains spoilers for “The Iron Claw”
The lights come on, an empty ring sits in the middle of a stadium, and everything is still. The stage is set. This is where we will come to know the champions of the Von Erich family, as they each take the stage to bring great honor to their family name. The opening scene begins with an epic wrestling match, showing us the wrestling skills of the patriarch of the Von Erich family, invoking awe and wonder from the eyes of his sons. Then, we are brought to the 1980s, the beginning of the boys’ journey to stardom.
Fans of wrestling will get a kick from watching the Von Erich brothers grapple with each other both in the ring and outside of it. Director Dean Durkin was a huge fan of wrestling when he was younger. Not only was he a fan of wrestling, but he grew up watching the Von Erichs on his television screen. Durkin’s love for the sport is felt throughout the film. The wrestling sequences are full of life and gravitas, making the audience feel the excitement of the match as if we were there. Durkin sits the camera in the middle of the action and doesn’t rely on fast cuts to create the raw feeling of being slammed onto the tarmac. Filming on 35mm film gives the film the late ’80s feel that lends to its authenticity of time and place. Although we get a sense of how influential this family is in the wrestling world, the glitz and glamor of it all get exposed quickly to show the hardships this family faces.
This is where the family dynamic comes into play, and the film turns from a sports drama to a family drama. We follow four Von Erich brothers: Kevin (Zac Efron), David (Harris Dickinson), Mike (Stanley Simmons), and Kerry (Jeremey Allen White) as they juggle the demanding weight of wrestling, their father’s (Holt McCallany) expectations, and internal battles. Each brother has his own identifying traits: David is the public speaker, Mike the musician, Kerry the almost-Olympian, and Kevin the performer.
The two-hour runtime peels back the layers of these men just enough to make us care. Although “The Iron Claw” does a good job of balancing the brothers’ screen time and stories, we follow the film from Kevin’s perspective. He spends the majority of the film trying to keep the family safe from both their father’s tough ways and the Von Erich curse. This “curse” took the lives of David, Mike, and Kerry in real life, and the film handles these losses with the utmost gravity. David’s death comes as a shock to both Kevin and the audience, which becomes our first plunge into the dark side of the ring. After the film semi-rushes through its second act, we are hit with tragic event after tragic event. It’s an onslaught of feelings delivered earnestly by Efron, who flexes both his acting muscles and his real ones. The brothers’ physical prowess feels like a character of its own, taking up a lot of space.
Those who don’t take up a lot of space on screen are the female characters. Lily James, who plays Kevin’s girlfriend-turned-wife, plays a very supporting role but is only there to support and help Kevin through the worst of the family curse. Even though this story focuses on the Von Erichs, seeing more of who will help Kevin carry on the family legacy would have been nice, especially after watching the scene where Pam comforts the boys’ mother Doris (Maura Tierney) in a sorrowful scene. Tierney also gives a solid performance that is at times overshadowed by McCallany’s looming presence, which resembles the couple’s dynamic in the film. The Von Erichs’ father, Fritz, is so hell-bent on getting back at the world when things don’t go his way that he neglects taking care of his sons, and McCallany portrays this well in his performance. The film’s casting director did, however, do a great job of casting the wrestling villains. Kevin Anton and Aaron Dean Eisenberg embodied Harley Race and Rick Flair respectively, putting on a show for us in full force.
“The Iron Claw” is both entertaining to watch and deeply sad, putting the audience through a whirlwind of emotions. In between the sad moments are moments filled with love and the performances by the entire cast capture that familial bond. The crux is the bond between the brothers though, and makes the emotional rollercoaster worthwhile.
Image courtesy of IMDb
