The Smashing Machine Review: Dwayne Johnson Packs A Punch In Mark Kerr’s Biopic Ft Emily Blunt!
Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt's film on Mark Kerr is directed by Benny Safdie.
3.5 / 5
Last week, I saw not one, but two brilliant actors and the immense passion towards their craft. Most of us have already witnessed Rishabh Shetty in Kantara: Chapter 1, and now we are about to see Dwayne Johnson in The Smashing Machine. The film also stars Emily Blunt, Ryan Bader, and Bas Rutten in pivotal roles. Directed by Benny Safdie, the film is a biopic on the wrestler and MMA fighter Mark Kerr. Set to release on October 10, here’s a quick review of the sports drama. But first, take a bow for Dwayne Johnson!
Plot
Dwayne Johnson plays the role of Mark Kerr, a fighter, while Emily Blunt portrays Kerr’s girlfriend, and later his wife, Dawn Staples. Ryan Bader aces the roles of Mark Coleman, Kerr’s colleague and best friend, and Bas Rutten is seen as himself in the film. The Smashing Machine revolves around Marr Kerr’s life as a wrestles, and focuses heavily on his personal life struggles that hampered his career big time. It also sheds light on the rather disturbed and push-pull kind of relationship between Mark and Dawn, and the drug addiction. On the sidelines, The Smashing Machine also shows us a bit of the camararadie shared between Kerr and Coleman.
Performances
Dwayne Johnson is certainly the strongest part of this film. The film has themes of resilience, hard-work, passion, needed to mercilessly fight the battle in the ring. And who better to play the part that the one who himself has closely dealt with it. Dwayne Johnson has given his all to this role and it comes across through the screen. For the ones who know about Mark Kerr, and the ones who don’t, Dwayne Johnson makes sure that we see Mark Kerr on our screen and not him. The perfect prosthetics of course is an added bonus there, but despite that, Johnson pulls off the emotional vulnerability of the character with so much impact. He is through and through convincing.
Emily Blunt’s is flawless as Dawn Staples. From her looks, to delivering her emotions as the obsessed, borderline toxic but also caring girlfriend, the actor has done a impressive job of making us have a love-hate relationship with Dawn. Even her styling was top-notch!
Ryan Bader as Mark Coleman has delivered an impactful performance too, and so has Bas Rutten.
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Director’s Work, VFX
Banny Safdie has made sure to visually transport us all in the world of Marr Kerr. The 90s setting is perfectly communicated through the raw and grainy tones. The actors look their parts too, and no comprises have been made on that. So overall, The Smashing Machine visually creates the ambience and experience that it intents to!
Story And Pace!
The Smashing Machine’s story is a mix of Mark Kerr’s personal and professional life. The first half of the film is heavy on his wrestling career, simultaneously showing us the reasons of his downfall too. The second half focuses on the drug abuse, his relationship, and Kerr’s resilience towards making a strong comeback. While most of the film is engaging, in the first half, the biopic struggles with pace. A lot of information is thrown at us, and it can be overwhelming too. The story however could be emotionally heavy but it’s not, because the director has maintained a subtle and soothing tone for the film, evident through long pauses, chaos cut to calmness.
At one moment we are invested in Kerr’s challenges as a wrestler who just wants to be on top, but that is interrupted by his rather overpowering personal life and addictions. This constant juggle mirrors real life but the storytelling falters in consistency.
Verdict: Dwayne Johnson Is Brilliant In This Watchable Biopic!
Dwayne Johnson absolutely shines in this biopic on Marr Kerr. Also, The Smashing Machine successfully reminds of of the forgotten legends who were the pioneers in the world of wrestling, but don’t expect it to be a glorifying ode. The story comes with flaws, especially pace and overdose of information packed in a 2 hours film, which feels very long. WHowever, the perfomances are memorable and makes the film a fairly impressive watch in the theatres.
First Published: October 07, 2025 4:32 PM
