The true story of the inseparable Von Erich brothers, who made history in the intensely competitive world of professional wrestling in the early 1980s.
Kevin Von Erich (Zac Efron) loves his family more than anything. He and his brothers do their best to make their father’s wrestling dreams (Holt McCallany) come true, even in the face of tragedy.
The Von Erichs were a legendary wrestling family based in Dallas, where I am from. However, they were before my time. Many of my family members know of the Von Erichs and have been to their shows in the ’80s. I knew nothing about them before going in to see this film and came out devastated by the true story.
This is undoubtedly Zac Efron’s best performance to date. He really impressed me with his acting here, having come quite far since his “High School Musical” days. Kevin is a character easy to empathize with. He is the oldest brother but is surpassed by his younger brothers in wrestling. He is happy and proud of his brothers but is also jealous of them. As tragedy continues to befall the Von Erichs, Kevin withdraws. He gets more and more paranoid that something will happen to his own wife and kids.
The camaraderie shared between all the brothers is quite endearing. They are each other’s support system. They live, work, wrestle, and go out together. They are also happiest when they are all together. If one of the brothers is missing, it feels slightly off. Kevin has three brothers in the film – Kerry (Jeremy Allen White), David (Harris Dickinson), and Mike (Stanley Simons), though he had four in real life.
Despite not caring much for sports, I was enthralled by this film. While you see some wrestling matches, the film focuses more on the family and their dynamic than the sport. I also think the movie had good pacing, though it was sometimes hard to tell what year it was as we entered the film’s second half. The brothers are all so big that it is hard to know how old they are supposed to be.
I must disclose that the tone gets melancholic and sad in the film’s second half. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself shedding a tear or two. There is some levity, but most of it occurs at the beginning of the film when the brothers joke around or film their match intros. The father’s pressure on each of his sons is quite heavy. And when they cannot live up to his expectations, the disappointment feels burdensome. McCallany’s performance gives his character an air of superiority. He must always be obeyed. He can easily intimidate them despite no longer being physically imposing like his sons.
I’m unsure whether “The Iron Claw” will get any awards attention, but it should. I had no expectations of this film and came out of it thinking it was one of the year’s best. The casting ensemble shines in this tragic family drama, with Efron proving he is a capable, dramatic leading man. Kudos to director Sean Durkin for handling this story with sensitivity and grace.
In Theaters Friday, December 22nd
