Warrior Film Review

Review by Jack Giroux on http://thefilmstage.com/reviews/review-warrior/



Warrior is a true surprise of a film. An effective, mostly honest look at brotherhood, fatherhood and redemption. Neither cynical or dopey, the film finds a believable middle-ground within an almost unbelievable concept.



Writer-director Gavin O’Connor happened to find some heart deep inside the run-of-the-mill premise. Unlike his previous effort, the tedious Pride and Glory, Warrior makes conventions fly, rather than sink. The script goes to the places one expects it too, but never bores in getting there.



The story is focuses on two brothers and a father, all from different worlds. Brendan Conlon (Joel Edgerton) is set up as a respected family man, that teacher everyone likes in high school. The younger of the two, Tommy (Tom Hardy), is a mystery at first, but obviously a scarred loose cannon. The father, Paddy Conlon (Nick Nolte), is a burnt-out old man that lives in regret, relying on his new found sobriety. At first we glimpse Brendan’s cozy suburban life and Tommy and Paddy’s not-so-cozy Pittsburgh life. The worlds collide when a MMA (mixed martial arts) tournament comes up. Tommy needs a trainer for it, so he enlists the man he feels nothing but bitterness for: his estranged father. Brendan needs the money, so without the full consent of his wife, Tess (Jennifer Morrison), he enters the competition as well.



It’s hard not to roll one’s eyes while elaborating on the conflict. This all sounds trite, contrived and like plenty of other sports movies we’ve seen before. And thought it certainly fits a few trappings of what audiences expect from the genre, it’s handled with a measure of grace. O’Connor never focuses strictly on the high testosterone levels, but rather searches for something deeper and more meaningful.



Speaking of machismo, it’s surprising how little the director glamorizes the mixed-martial arts scene. MMA is a brutal and terrible sport, and watching two brothers beat the hell out of each other only adds to the violence. The fact that O’Connor and his editors manage to make Tommy and Brendan’s rise in the tournament exciting is an accomplishment, especially in an age where “training sequences” have devolved into little more than self-parody. Sure enough, once that final round comes, it’s all about the physical and dramatic brutality of the situation.



The more punches Tommy and Brendan throw, the more tense and uncomfortable the fight gets. Tommy is an emotional bull with more power than he can handle, built from an unrelenting anger and heavy resentment. Brendan is the more rational of the two, with no time to constantly be brooding about how unfair the world is.



All of this is played with great restraint by Edgerton and Hardy. They let you into their head space without saying much. Tommy is a character that acts questionably harsh at times, but Hardy brings an understanding and true sympathy to the rule, despite his contrived background. Brendan is trying to do right by his family, so rooting for the school teacher is no chore. These are people the audience roots for, in a true crowd-pleasing sense, and the closure Tommy and Brendan meet feels both earned and satisfying.