Joel Edgarton and Tom Hardy star as two feuding brothers who haven't seen each other in years. Nick Nolte stars as their father with a long history of violent drunkeness. He's been clean and sober for a few years but is still paying the price for all he's done to his family. Nolte is brilliant here. One of the best performances I've seen from him.Set within the Mized-Martial arts scene, the two brothers compete for a large purse in a kind of tough man competition, combined with a strong dose of family drama fueled with testosterone. Edgarton and Hardy turn in strong performances and really look the parts of MMA fighters: lean, muscular and freakishly ripped.
It's a good movie, even if the story is a little far fetched. The fights are beautifully done, leading up to the great master battle that pits the two brothers against each other.
I was expecting more of a feel good ending on par with Rocky or something like that. It doesn't deliver in that respect, but maybe it wasn't supposed to.
Overall, it's good theater, richly done, that lacks any emotional staying power.
1 comment:
I really like Nolte, an actor who truly has presence. There's an off-beat, understated little film called Northfork where his rough and weary persona is wonderfully translated through a small but central role as a priest. There's not a lot of action in the movie and sometimes it tries to be a little too cute, but it features a pretty impressive cast: James Woods, Claire Forlani, Daryl Hannah, Peter Coyote, Anthony Edwards and Kyle MacLachlan. Nolte's performance is by far the most riveting, though Woods is also excellent.
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