The Iron Claw Review (Spoilers)

            I had mixed feelings about going to see Iron Claw. On the one hand, it was about wrestling and that was not very exciting to me. On the other hand, it had Zac Efron in it. Zac Efron has a good track record with movies (my favorite is Hairspray, my second favorite is Neighbors) so Justin and I gave the movie a chance. It’s an A24 studio movie based on the true story of the Von Erich family. If you never heard of the Von Erich family, it’s okay. I didn’t either until now. They are a wrestling dynasty. So yes, the movie was about wrestling. But not only about wrestling.

There are four Von Erich brothers in the movie, all wrestlers,: Kevin Von Erich (played by Zach Efron), David Von Erich, Kerry Von Erich (Jeremy Allen White), and Mike Von Erich. There was also a brother named Jack Von Erich who was the oldest Von Erich but died at six years old. Curiously enough when I was doing research I discovered another brother, Chris Von Erich, who was not featured in the movie.  Their father is constantly comparing his sons (he even ranks his children) and pushing them in their training. This causes the brothers to form a very tight bond, which makes it all the more sad when tragedy strikes.

            David is in Japan, competing, when the family receives word that one of his organs has ruptured and he is dead. This is devastating to the whole family, especially Kevin, the oldest. He actually believes his family is cursed and is worried the curse will spread to the new family he just started with his wife. Then Mike is in the ring when his shoulder is torn. A simple surgery goes very wrong. Mike spikes a fever and develops toxic shock syndrome. He recovers but is handicapped mentally and physically. He takes some pills, downs some alcohol and goes into the field to die. As Kevin keeps building his family (he now has two boys), his brother Kerry comes to him for help. But Kevin is too late. Kerry  has already shot himself. The littlest brother, Chris, also apparently shot himself in the head.

“I expected to get a good movie about a topic I really don’t have much knowledge about, one that hopefully will leave a lasting impact beyond the information it's conveying. And I’m happy to say, it did just that,” says movie buff Justin Favaro. “I found myself to be just as emotionally invested as I found it factually interesting. In terms of performances, I felt that there might be a little sense of Oscar buzz”

“The best part of the movie is the relationship between all the brothers and the inherent tragedy behind their relationship with their father. It was the most heart-wrenching, it was the most frustrating and I felt it was inherently the message of the movie which is you are not a bad person for what life throws at you or the circumstances life has for you. It really speaks to the pressure of being the best and the pressure of doing what is right for yourself”

“The length could be a little much at times but I was never bored with the movie. The father really made me angry but I think that speaks more to the strength of the movie because I think that is exactly what the movie wanted you to feel. He loved his children but he was very clearly emotionally abusive and he was the reason for  the death of several of his children”

It was a heavy movie. I cried several times. There were so many times these boys could have been saved from the pressure they received from their own father. And the mother did nothing to step in either. As a result, Kevin lost all his brothers. The last shot of the movie is him playing football with his own kids.

            In between all the personal drama, there was also wrestling which didn’t really interest me. And it was over two hours which is usually my limit (I don’t have the capacity to sit still that long). But I enjoy seeing Zac Efron shirtless so hey, I’m not complaining.