Movie Review: ‘The Smashing Machine’

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Review by James Lindorf

Since he burst onto the WWE scene in 1996, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has been a staple of pop culture. He is beloved as a pillar of the Attitude Era, his appearances in the Fast and Furious franchise, as well as voicing Maui in one of the best animated films of the last 20 years. He has also been besieged with criticism about his film choices, his acting ability, and his ego, which shines through in references to his physical fitness or the rumors that he was contractually prohibited from losing a on-screen fight. Johnson is at his best when he brings his natural charm and charisma to another character in movies like “The Rundown,” “The Game Plan,” and “Pain & Gain.” Now, in an effort to show people he is more than just a smile and muscles, he has partnered with Benny Safdie and A24 for their biographical sports drama “The Smashing Machine,” which opens everywhere on October 3rd.

Just months after Johnson made his wrestling debut, Mark Kerr (Johnson) entered his first Mixed Martial Arts competition at the World Vale Tudo Championship 3 in Brazil. After a spectacular start to his career, Kerr became a mainstay in the sports top rankings, taking fights all over the world. He trained with his best friend, Mark Coleman, played by Ryan Bader, the Season 8 winner of “The Ultimate Fighter,” and Bas Rutten, who plays himself. The hard work and pain seem worth it when Coleman and Kerr are invited to the biggest tournament of their careers. Japan’s Pride Grand Prix 2000 will award the winner $200,000. Kerr is a serious contender as long as he isn’t derailed by a lack of focus, addiction, or his toxic relationship with Dawn Staples (Emily Blunt).

“The Smashing Machine” had its world premiere in the main competition of the 82nd Venice International Film Festival on September 1st, before making a stop in Toronto for their film festival. They hoped to garner a lot of buzz, and they did just that. In Venice, Safdie won the Silver Lion award for directing, and all reports are calling this the best performance Johnson has ever given. The short answer is that those reports are correct. I cannot remember Johnson giving a more well-rounded and deep performance before.

There was never any doubt that Johnson could handle the physical aspect of the performance. The real treat is moments of beautiful complexity where the man capable of intense violence is being so nice and deferential to those around him. The dichotomy could be enough, but there was always a hint of an edge in those moments where I wondered if Mark was performing. Was he trying to unsettle people by not living up to their assumptions about MMA fighters? However, this did not reach award-winning levels. Would I be shocked if he is nominated? No. However, I do believe that his inability to truly convey the emotional moments and Safdie’s decision to largely gloss over Mark’s battle for sobriety prevent the performance from reaching those heights.

Johnson is good, and Emily Blunt is predictably fantastic, but the performance I was most excited by was Ryan Bader’s. Acting in a world he is so intimately familiar with may not have stretched his acting skills to the limit. Still, for his first credit, I think he was great and could have a chance to extend his earning ability outside of the ring. Bader was a spectacular bit of casting, and while I said Blunt was fantastic, she also felt miscast. She gives the film everything it needs, but it always feels like acting and not an embodiment of the character.

Safdie is clearly passionate about Kerr’s story. He wants to be able to show so much of it while not deifying or crucifying the man. He wants us to appreciate the dynamics of the fights, but they are not always presented in an entertaining manner. Based on the film and camera choices, I wonder if this was an intentional choice to reflect the cinematography styles of those early MMA tournaments. In that case, that is interesting, and I appreciate the lack of sheen on the product. Still, the fight sequences lacked the variety and excitement we expect as an audience. The desire to cover such a large portion of Mark’s life at that time is largely well balanced, but the part that suffered the most is his relationship with Dawn. It transitions from awkward to sweet to destructive, with some whiplash-inducing changes. Then, some on-screen text at the very end gives further details that should have been shown to us.

“The Smashing Machine” is so close to being a genuinely great film. A little re-editing to give Mark and Dawn more time while reducing and polishing the fight scenes, and we could be looking at an all-time sports classic. As it stands, the movie is impressive on many levels and has no problem holding your attention for 123 minutes; however, its flaws bring it down to a solid 4 out of 5.

Genre: Biography, Drama, Sports
Rating: R (Language and Some Drug Abuse)
Runtime: 2h 3m
Release Date (Theaters): October 3rd, 2025
Director: Benny Safdie
Producer: Benny Safdie, Dwayne Johnson, Eli Bush, Hiram Garcia, Dany Garcia, David Koplan
Screenwriter: Benny Safdie
Distributor: A24
Production Co: Out for the Count, Seven Bucks Productions, A24