Film Review — The Iron Claw
★★★★☆ Zac Efron delivers a championship-calibre performance in Sean Durkin's powerful wrestling biopic
The Iron Claw hits hard. Really hard. About as hard as a gut-wrench powerbomb to the unforgiving concrete outside the ring.
Based on the tragic true story of the Von Erich family, Sean Durkin’s powerful biopic is similar to Darren Aronofsky’s The Wrestler. Both showcase the bright lights, hulking physiques and over-the-top nature of professional wrestling, but the real hard-hitting drama takes place away from the squared circle.
It’s often emotionally challenging, but Derkin finds balance. His dark and harrowing film is also frequently beautiful, a film that, at its heart, is about family, brotherhood and the undefeatable power of eternal love.
Worlds removed from his halcyon days as “that guy from High School Musical”, Zac Efron delivers the best performance of his career so far. The general lack of awards consideration for his performance is cruelly ironic; another snub for a family long synonymous with misfortune and omission.
