Movie Review: Fighting with My Family

I should probably come clean right away. I am not a fan of the WWE. I know next to nothing about it, have only seen clips of matches, and could name only Dwayne Johnson, Hulk Hogan, and John Cena as actual WWE wrestlers off the top of my head. It’s not that I dislike the WWE or its fans, it’s just that I never got into the phenomenon and it just never seemed like it was for me. So, it was a surprise that when I saw the trailer for Fighting with My Family that the film looked appealing to me. Mix a good cast with an inspiring underdog sports story and you should have a decent movie, and while that mix is on full display in Fighting with My Family, the movie ultimately left me feeling somewhat indifferent. Although writer/director Stephen Merchant attempts to tell a story with heart and humor, the final product feels watered down and predictable. The film never rises above the countless sports dramas that have come before it, and while it has entertaining and inspiring moments, Fighting with My Family left me shrugging instead of fist-pumping.

The film focuses on Saraya Knight (Florence Pugh) and her wrestling-obsessed family. Her parents (Nick Frost and Lena Headey) have taught Saraya and her brother Zak (Jack Lowden) everything there is to know about wrestling. They have their own gym, run their own shows, and dream about someday making it onto WWE’s main roster. When they both get the chance to show their wrestling abilities to a WWE scout named Hutch (Vince Vaughn), it is Saraya who impresses enough to move on to train to secure a spot in the WWE and not her brother. She takes on the stage name Paige and quickly realizes all the emotional and physical challenges she will have to overcome to be successful.

Not being a WWE fan, I was a little worried that much of this film would go over my head, but the film does a great job of establishing exactly what the WWE is and why it is such a big deal to so many people. While I would normally say this is due to the writer and director of a movie, in this instance, all the credit should go to the ensemble cast. Every character is perfectly cast, and every actor gives off an infectious energy that makes you believe in the characters’ obsession and motivation. The film captures what it means to be a fan of something and just why you continue to follow your dream even when all the odds seem to be stacked against you. The entire ensemble brings the humor, warmth, and intensity needed to make the film believable for an audience.

While the cast certainly makes things watchable and entertaining, the writing and directing of Fighting with My Family unfortunately falls short. Stephen Merchant is an incredibly talented comedian, and a lot of the comedy works in this film, but Merchant unfortunately never cracks the formula to make this movie stand out from the countless other sports underdog stories that have come before it. While the film is entertaining enough to pass the time from scene to scene, you start to feel the inevitability of it all and can easily see where the story is going next. While I understand that this is ultimately based on a true story and that Merchant must remain loyal to that, I feel like there is something that could have been done to elevate the story to a more inspired conclusion. The beats are far too familiar and predictable which is unfortunate given the film’s eclectic cast of characters.

Florence Pugh in “Fighting with My Family.”

One of the other big problems I had with this film is the way that it portrayed certain characters and situations. I realize that Merchant had a limited amount of time to tell this family’s story, but many of the characters’ arcs felt rushed and undermined by the sports movie formula. It felt like certain characters had to do certain things because that is what usually happens in a sports movie and Merchant never really sells why it happened to this movie. It ultimately felt water downed, and although the film will certainly have you laughing through most of it, I feel like this could have been something far more special with a little added attention to detail and perhaps a bit more creative inspiration.

Fighting with My Family is without a doubt a crowd-pleasing movie and one that will not only entertain WWE fans, but even non-fans will likely find much of this film enjoyable. My issues with the film come down to how it never plays as unique as its characters and the people it’s based on. The family is extraordinary, and the cast does a great job in capturing their individual characters’ uniqueness, but the film itself is not unique at all. You have probably seen this movie before in some form; maybe this movie is funnier than most sports-themed films, but it’s not crafted nearly as well as many other sports films. This is not a bad movie, but it’s also not a very good one. I’m not sure wrestlers can earn a draw in WWE, but Fighting with My Family is certainly a draw for me.

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Scott Davis

Scott Davis is a recent graduate of Oakland University where he earned a degree in journalism. He worked for the student newspaper on campus, The Oakland Post, where he became the paper's managing editor. He also earned a minor in Cinema Studies at OU. Scott enjoys all things film and TV related, especially the blockbuster kind. He might be the biggest Christopher Nolan fan you know.

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