REVIEW: The Smashing Machine (2025 film) - Starring Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt

Review by Jon Donnis

Watching The Smashing Machine, I couldn't help but notice just how far Dwayne Johnson has come as an actor. He's not The Rock here, not really. He's Mark Kerr, stumbling through victories and failures with this raw honesty that hits harder than you expect. There's something in the way he carries himself, in the quiet moments after a loss or during a fight, that feels completely lived-in. Emily Blunt is brilliant too. Dawn could have been a flat, unsympathetic figure, but she's complicated, fragile and frustrating all at once, and Blunt captures that without ever overplaying it. Their relationship scenes are messy, uncomfortable, and somehow very real.

The film itself, well, it's a mixed bag. Safdie tries to cram so much into two hours that it never really breathes. One moment you're in the middle of Kerr's brutal fights, the next he's wrestling with personal demons or dealing with Japanese officials. Sometimes it feels like you're being handed pieces of a puzzle but never quite given the picture. The editing doesn't help either. It jumps around so much that I occasionally found myself trying to figure out what the film actually wanted me to feel.

And yet, there's something undeniably engaging about it. The fight scenes are tense, physically convincing, and full of small details that tell you a lot about Kerr's mindset without spelling it out. Moments with Bas Rutten and Mark Coleman are lively and often funny in unexpected ways, breaking up the intensity. Some quieter scenes, like Kerr arguing with Dawn or struggling in rehab, stick with you longer than you'd think. They feel messy in the best way, like life itself.

Where it falters is in perspective. If you don't know Mark Kerr, the stakes don't always land. The film tries to show the highs and lows, but it never really tells you why you should care beyond the fights. It's fascinating if you're already invested in MMA, but for a wider audience it can feel a bit thin.

Still, for anyone curious to see Dwayne Johnson actually acting instead of performing, there's plenty here to enjoy. And if you're a fan of MMA like me, there's a lot to take in. For a proper deep dive into Kerr's life, though, the 2002 documentary The Smashing Machine: The Life and Times of Extreme Fighter Mark Kerr is still the definitive watch.

It's a film with flashes of brilliance and moments that really hit, but it never quite pulls it all together. I'd give The Smashing Machine a 7 out of 10.

In cinemas now, and coming to digital at https://apple.co/4mYa8qF