MOVIE REVIEW: Warrior.

I’ve had this in my Drafts folder for a few weeks now, but I’m just now getting around to finishing it. Get off my back, alright? Sheesh. The life of a blogger is tough. Plus there’s no natural sunlight here in the confines of my mom’s basement.

I was trying to write some lengthy, well thought out review. I quickly gave up. I don’t know how to write a ton about movies without giving away key plot points and revealing spoilers. So instead, I’ll keep my reviews short and to the point. Here goes …

If I were a “movie critic” quote whore, like say, Pete Hammond, I might call this movie “Superb, intense, moving” or “Packs a powerful punch of emotion” or “Spellbinding, grips you and never lets go”. But alas, I am not one of those people whose quotes end up on the preview or cover art. I’m just a simple dude. A simple, handsome dude.

Warrior is a movie which centers around the sport of Mixed Martial Arts, but, much like Moneyball, uses it as a backdrop to tell a different story altogether. Two estranged brothers each enter an MMA tournament whose prize is $5 million dollars. Each needs the money for different reasons, and you want both to win. Nick Nolte, in his first real role in as long as I can remember, is fantastic as the former alcoholic father to both Tommy and Brendan. Tommy, played by Tom Hardy, is a giant ball of rage. He hates his father, he hates his brother, he hates the world. He has a lot of anger, and MMA seems to be the perfect outlet. Brendan, played expertly by Joel Edgerton, is a high school physics teacher. He is a former UFC fighter, but retired due to multiple factors, including fatherhood. Brendan gets suspended from his teaching position by the school’s superintendent for taking part in a small MMA fight. With almost no money coming into the house, Brendan decides to return to the cage and make some money fighting.

Throughout all of this, we learn both Tommy and Brendan have a terrible upbringing, and each have issues with how their father behaved. Warrior felt very much like last year’s The Fighter, and I absolutely loved that movie, too. Dark, gritty, emotional, and fantastically acted. (How’s that for a quote, Pete?)

Rent, Buy, or Avoid:

Buy. 100x buy.

Overall rating:

9 out of 10.