It’s award season on the films, and A24 as soon as once more is throwing their hat within the ring with their newest launch, The Smashing Machine, starring Dwayne Johnson in his most prestigious function but as pioneering MMA fighter Mark Kerr, with Emily Blunt co-starring.
With the studio actually making a singular advertising push for this film, JoBlo was invited to their occasion in NYC known as The Smashing Machine 2000 Arcade. This was a promotional occasion that had basic preventing arcade video games together with a Smashing Machine MMA preventing sport, with a boxing ring arrange, sparing gear on show and extra. It was a reasonably badass occasion.
They even had a boxing punch machine. Similar to in Rocky IV. You get to reveal your energy in PSI. Haha my punch….750 was my finest….so not fairly at Drago’s 1400 PSI. Guess I’ve to work on my kind.
However the true spotlight of the occasion was that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Emily Blunt attended. UNFORTUNATELY, because the occasion began and by the point I acquired inside…the 2 of them needed to depart… for no matter motive. However whereas I used to be there, I used to be lucky sufficient to catch director Benny Safdie and have a reasonably cool dialog with him. One of many issues that acquired me PUMPED to see this film, certainly one of my favorite boxers proper now’s Oleksandr Usyk, presently the lineal undisputed champion in TWO divisions (heavyweight AND Cruiserweight), makes his cinematic debut as MMA Kickboxer legend Igor Vovchanhcyn. Benny Safdie talked about that when Usyk and Johnson acquired within the ring, everybody within the filmed viewers was in awe and pleasure to see the 2 conflict once they filmed their combat scene!
And to high this off, this occasion additionally had some wonderful merch giveaways. Everybody who attended acquired a free shirt (identical ones used within the movie) and a free poster. Good souvenirs to go along with the occasion.
I managed to see the film as properly after I attended the occasion and it was all the pieces that I had hoped for. After all of the hype and reward it acquired within the movie pageant circuit, it lived as much as that hype. Dwayne Johnson gave a efficiency of a lifetime as Kerr, and Emily Blunt was fantastic as his girlfriend Daybreak Staple. It’s excessive octane MMA motion but additionally has very dramatic moments that actually tug on the heartstrings. I imagine this movie will get some nods on the Oscars and is likely one of the most memorable films of 2025. 9 out of 10 from this man (our personal Chris Bumbray gave it the identical)! The one flaw I believe is that the rating and music from the movie may be distracting and take away from a number of the wonderful scenes. You don’t should be a fan of fight sports activities to like this film. Dwayne Johnson has proved he’s greater than only a huge field workplace motion star. His performing has taken an enormous step ahead.
