Took In Fighting With My Family

And somehow it took me a week to write this down.  This was a big one for me as it was so strange to see the trailers airing on regular TV with all the wrestling included. The good thing is that the movie was very solid, though of course there are some issues.

First and foremost, it needs to be noted that this movie is not for the hardcore wrestling fans (real fans will see at least two anachronisms in the opening scene alone). This is designed for the masses as a way to show them a side of wrestling that they don’t know. On that front, it works well enough as the actress who plays Paige is charming enough to make you want to cheer for her. The rest of the cast is mostly positive as well, with Nick Frost and Lena Headley as her parents being very good. Her brother is a big part of the story and the actor who plays him is fine, though unmemorable, which is how his character is supposed to be.

Overall, the story is a very condensed and cleaned up version of Paige’s wrestling life story, starting with her childhood and wrapping up the night she debuted on Raw and won the Divas Title. It’s a story you’ve seen before: the athlete/whatever else who is talented for their small world but gets a bit of a surprise when they move up to the big stage. She’s not sure if she can make it but winds up pulling it off through heart and help from her loved ones.

That’s fair enough, and I can live with the changes they made. Paige’s reign as NXT Women’s Champion is omitted and it’s made to seem that she just got called up one day and won the title with little faith that she was ready to make the move. That’s not exactly how things went, but as mentioned, it’s a bit better story than saying she was a near prodigy and at worst the second best female wrestler on the roster the day she debuted.

There are some cameos in the movie with Big Show and Sheamus appearing backstage, plus three women who are stand-ins for Summer Rae, Alexa Bliss and (maybe) Sasha Banks. They’re presented as something close to the Four Horsewomen and again, it’s not the worst change in the world as the masses aren’t going to care about a stable in a developmental territory.

The big draw is of course the Rock, who manages to feel wedged into a movie about his world. The timing is a bit off again, but it’s the kind of thing that works well enough. He’s funny in parts and is there as a combination of himself and our guide to the wrestling world. You could have cut him out and not changed the story, but this movie would have bombed hard without him. It’s doing ok enough with him, though it’s far from a smash hit.

Overall the movie is entertaining to see as a wrestling fan and isn’t going to offend non-fans. The message is that it’s ok to be yourself even if people don’t think what you’re doing is cool or worthwhile and there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s certainly worth seeing, though you would be fine watching it on Netflix or something like that. Catch it in the theater if you can’t but it’s not exactly required. Very good, though it’s not exactly a masterpiece.