It’s fitting that my final review of 2023 is for a film I’ve had on my radar for quite some time and one who’s story I’m familiar with as a wrestling fan for nearly 30 years. At the heart of the film is a family tragedy that has been in the conversation in the wrestling community for an even more extended period. That film is The Iron Claw, and that family is the Von Erichs.
Despite numerous documentaries covering the family and their history, the lack of knowledge regarding the Von Erichs is not overly shocking as some newer fans I’ve encountered over the past few years have little to no understanding of who they were, despite older wrestling fans talking on the good, the bad and the tragic.
While the Von Erich story is an important one to tell, it’s even more important to keep authenticity in their story, and when it comes to films in the wrestling genre, there are few and far between I’d consider noteworthy and entertaining. For every The Wrestler, there is a Ready to Rumble that ultimately brings to light the industry’s stereotypes rather than The Wrestler‘s realism.
With writer/director Sean Durkin helming this project, respect for the family, the industry, and their story I had little to no concern that Durkin would provide the proper care to their story. The Iron Claw steps inside the squared circle and delivers a haunting, emotional, and heartbreaking deconstruction of familial expectations and toxic masculinity while capturing the pressures of pro wrestling in the 1980s for one of the era’s royal families – the Von Erichs.
The film centers around the Von Erich boys, Kevin, Kerry, David, and Mike, and their parents, Fritz and Doris. Weaving through the politics of pro wrestling in the territory era, Fritz establishes World Class Championship Wrestling, where Kevin, David, and Kerry are the pillars of the organization and where Fritz’s favorite son was always changing. With the constant pressures at hand, the Von Erich “family curse” looms over their heads as tragedy enters their lives and refuses to leave.
Sean Durkin’s direction and screenplay effectively weaves through the emotional highs and lows to convey the consequences of what influence a parental figure can have on their children. The screenplay also manages to capture the toxic masculinity and mental health effects the industry can have on wrestlers, as the era was known for hiding injuries, self-medicating, and continuing to work with the fears of losing their “spot.” While Durkin’s screenplay may receive heat for not including Chris Von Erich in the story, Durkin’s screen never wavers in execution or ability to tell the brothers’ story with care and respect.
As a wrestling fan and a cinephile, the idea of a great wrestling film doesn’t just live in the screenplay and direction but how the in-ring work is captured. Like his consultant efforts on Glow, Chavo Guerrero’s work on The Iron Claw can not be ignored. The awe-inducing in-ring action is, bar none, some of the best and most accurate work captured on screen.
The result of Durkin’s screenplay is on full display with one of my favorite ensembles of 2023. Jeremy Allen White captures Kerry’s charisma, while Harris Dickenson’s David Von Erich evokes the towering presence the most talented in-ring worker of the bunch carried. While heartbreaking, Stanley Simons’ innocence in Mike jumps off the screen.
Holt McCallany and Maura Tierney, as the patriarch and matriarch of the Von Erich family, are a sight to behold. McCallany evokes the spirit of Frtiz as he attempts to blend both promoter and father and, in turn, is menacing and powerful. Speaking of power, Tierney is sensational and offers some of the most heartbreaking moments in the film as heartbreak continues to reappear, including THE emotional scene with Lily James’ Pam Adkisson.
The MVP of The Iron Claw is Zac Efron, who gives his most physically and emotionally effective performance as Kevin. Efron’s take captures the love and resilience of Kevin as he is forced to adapt to the tragedies that enter his life.
The Iron Claw cements itself as not just one of the best films of the year, but one of the best to capture the ins and outs of the pro wrestling industry. It was a championship level victory for both wrestling fans and cinephiles.
