Warrior
Rated R. Our Ratings: V-4 ;L -1 ; S/N –1.
Running time: 2 hours 19 min.
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Two estranged brothers face off in a mixed martial arts tournment. © 2011 Lionsgate Films |
As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe
yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility,
meekness, and patience. Bear with one another
and, if anyone has a complaint against another,
forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven
you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe
yourselves with love, which binds everything
together in perfect harmony.
Colossians 3:12-14
I was not overly eager to see another fight film, but this one was reputed
to be as moving as the Fighter,
which turns out to be true. Just as the Fighter was more about family relationships
than boxing, so this
Mixed Martial Arts film focuses upon family relations as much as the sport
in which combatants are allowed, under supervision, to kick and wrestle as
well as punch. The Conlon family is one of the most dysfunctional families
ever seen in a sports film.
Brendan is a popular teacher whose home is about to be foreclosed, so he
decides to return to the sport that he had given up years before in order
to win the huge prize being offered at the “Sparta” world tournament
in Atlantic City. His estranged brother Tommy also decides to enter for his
own reasons that are tied to something that happened when he was in the Marines
serving in Afghanistan.
The brothers are not speaking, but their hostility toward their now reformed
alcoholic father Paddy (Nick Nolte) is even greater than their animosity
toward each other. Tommy asks his father to train him, but stipulates that
he is not interested in re-establishing their family relationship. There
follows a series of sequences in which each brother emerges on the fight
scene, much to the skepticism of fight fans and sportscasters, thus establishing
that this is another underdog come from behind tale.
The film will be too violent for many, but for those who can stand it, there
is an unusual and moving scene of reconciliation that will be remembered
for a long time. The brothers and father will have a long way to go before
they attain anything like the apostle Paul meant in his Colossians epistle,
but they are heading in the right direction. Probably appealing more to young
males than women, the film does offer the opportunity for some reflection
upon family, alcoholism, and reconciliation.
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