The Iron Claw

[jerkbronson]

I tried to keep my diseased wrestling brain turned off and thought they did pretty well respecting what was "real" and explaining the weird politicking of being a NWA territory. Kind of a shame that Chris Von Erich and Kerry Von Erich's family are written out of the history books but otherwise enjoyed the visual references to Lance Von Erich and the Freebird rivalry while still telling this incredible tragedy. Definitely some uncanny valley with Bruiser Brody, Ric Flair and just how short the actors were compared to their real world counterparts.

[on_the_edge]

Speaking of the Freebirds, I like that they did a short part with Buddy Roberts wearing the head wrestling gear.

[TTX]

It was an iconic angle in World Class.

[paul]

Finally got around to seeing this today and I was a bit disappointed; both as a wrestling fan and as a movie buff.

Whenever I watch a film based on a book I've read or a story I already know I try to put that out of my mind as I believe a film should be judged on its own merits and how well it tells its story. However, as a wrestling fan there were several things that bothered me:

1. How the rivalry with The Freebirds is barely mentioned: I get that you've only got a limited amount of time to tell the story but you're making a film about the Von Erichs and you're not going to go into detail about how heated that feud was? Really?

2. All throughout the movie all we keep hearing about from Fritz is how important winning the NWA World Championship is. When Kerry finally accomplishes that feat all we get is a short clip of the mother watching the finish on TV and a brief scene in the kitchen with Kerry and the belt. We don't get to see Fritz's reaction or the celebration afterwards. This was a MONUMENTAL moment in the Von Erich wrestling legacy and it's treated as a throwaway plot development. If someone who was unfamiliar with the story had stepped out for two minutes to take a whiz they would have returned to the theatre not even knowing that it happened as it's also never brought up again in the rest of the film.

3. This is a small nitpick but that actor who played Ric Flair was laughably bad in that promo. It's hard to find someone with as much charisma as Flair but if that's the best the filmmakers could find they either had a bad batch of applicants or they didn't look hard enough.

4. I also find it strange that they didn't mention in the written title cards at the end about how Ross & Marshall are carrying on the family legacy in the ring.

5. I found the scene in the afterlife where Kerry reunites with his brothers a bit off-putting. I get that David and Mike were excited to see their brother again but should they really be excited to see him again THAT SOON? Wouldn't they want Kerry to live a long and full life?

6. I didn't like how David's death was presented. Granted, I was one year old at the time of his passing but based on what I've read his death devastated the Texas wrestling community both fans and wrestlers alike. Here though it's not treated like that big of a deal.

Now on to my review as a movie fan who tried to forget that he knew the story beforehand:

I feel like this story was way too complex to try to tell in 2 hours and 12 minutes. Other than Kevin I felt like none of the other brothers were fully fleshed out characters. I feel like adding 45-60 minutes on to the run time could have helped alleviate this. Yes, I realize that would put the film in at over 3 hours but they had more than enough story to justify the extended run time. Better yet a 5-6 episode miniseries would have been the best method in my opinion as it would allowed for the proper time to present David, Mike and Kerry as something more than just tragic figures.

During the end title cards they mention how the Von Erichs are considered to be one of the greatest families in wrestling history and If I had gone into this film not knowing anything about the story I don't think I would have had that impression by the film's end.

Now there were some things I did like. I thought Zac Efron and Harris Dickinson were fantastic as Kevin and David respectively. I especially liked Efron's facial expressions during the scene where they win the 6-man Tag Team Titles. When Fritz is cutting that promo afterwards where he's praising David to the moon there's a wide variety of emotions expressed on Kevin's face including shock, disappointment and just a shred of jealousy. It was all conveyed perfectly by Efron.

Dickinson did a great job showcasing David's charisma especially in the scene where Kevin's trying to cut the post-match promo on Harley Race. While David was just trying to help out his brother who was floundering on the microphone he inadvertently ends up hijacking the moment. In that scene you can definitely tell why the NWA saw more potential in David than Kevin.

I thought the film did a good job showing the tension between Fritz and Kevin; I really believed Kevin's anger when he was choking Fritz after Kerry's suicide.

I also really enjoyed the final scene of the movie where Kevin's sons tried to cheer him up. While it didn't quite get my tear ducts going it came pretty close.

While I didn't think The Iron Claw was a terrible film I still have to give it a "thumbs-down". For me the film just doesn't work due to it's shorter-than-required run time and its failure to present Kerry, Mike and David as fully rounded characters. Also, for a film that was trying to pay respect to the family's legacy amidst all the tragedies I feel like they fell short in that area too.

Just my two-cents for what it's worth.

[on_the_edge]

In regards to your 2 point I seem to recall Fritz talking about how they finally got the belt in the family. It is possible the talk was dropped as it is possible Fritz wanted his family to win it but once they did he was disappointed that it was his son and not himself that won it. Also consider Kerry's accident shortly after winning it and the feel of the "curse" over the family.

[Big Bri]

Dec 30, 2023 21:16:03 GMT -5 Drew said:

I did however get to see a glimpse of the Fritz Von Erich I learned so much about on the Lapsed Fan podcast. The Lapsed Fan podcast did an amazing job documenting what happened with the Von Erich family and WCCW. I recommend anyone interested in the story to look at their series on the lamentable tragedy of World Class. Warning TLF is a long podcast. Some of the episodes are the story of what was going on behind the scenes and other episodes are covering what was going on in the ring.

Oh cool, I'll have to check it out. I did listen to one episode of Lapsed Fan about Hogan leaving the AWA for the WWF and it was awesome (and yes, very long but I knew that going in). I'll definitely check the Von Erich one out! Thanks!

[Big Bri]

Dec 30, 2023 21:49:42 GMT -5 on_the_edge said:

My take away from the movie is Fritz has a huge ego, most wrestlers do, and unfulfilled goals that he pushed his sons to accomplish. He was the type to do things without thinking of how it effected others let alone asking their opinion.

Ah, so you mean any dad from the 50's through the 70's? LOL.

Most of the men on my wife's side of the family are all bricklayers. They grew up with a union job with benefits waiting for them (and nothing wrong with that or being a bricklayer at all). A few years ago, I asked a couple of them "Didn't you ever want to do anything else?" "Um, no, it's just what the family does." Total groupthink. I guess if you grew up thinking "this is what I'm supposed to be" it's hard to see it a different way.

[on_the_edge]

Jan 5, 2024 17:39:14 GMT -5 Big Bri said:

Dec 30, 2023 21:49:42 GMT -5 on_the_edge said:

My take away from the movie is Fritz has a huge ego, most wrestlers do, and unfulfilled goals that he pushed his sons to accomplish. He was the type to do things without thinking of how it effected others let alone asking their opinion.

Ah, so you mean any dad from the 50's through the 70's? LOL.

Most of the men on my wife's side of the family are all bricklayers. They grew up with a union job with benefits waiting for them (and nothing wrong with that or being a bricklayer at all). A few years ago, I asked a couple of them "Didn't you ever want to do anything else?" "Um, no, it's just what the family does." Total groupthink. I guess if you grew up thinking "this is what I'm supposed to be" it's hard to see it a different way.

Well, that is like a lot of families. The children follow the footsteps of their parents into the "family business" be it bricklayers, farmers, police officers, firemen, etc. Part of it is following the parents in of itself but I think part of it is the more open path. I mean you grow up seeing your parent, and maybe other family members, working in a field so you understand what it takes to do the job at least more so than other jobs. Plus, you have someone to put in a good word for you and help you get your footing once you start in that field. Just like you said, they grew up with a job with benefits waiting for them and sometimes the easy path is the one we take.

[Husky77]

This has been called by many a movie of the year. Taking 3 non-wrestling fans to it, I asked what they thought the messages of the movie struck the most.

They all said the relationship of the brothers, and one said the relationships and manipulation of the father over his sons, as well. Even though most who probably saw the movie initially were wrestling fans, I doubt most will nitpick over the aspects of the accuracy of the wrestling parts. I doubt they will also when it comes to Oscars season.

[Bazzy]

Watched it yesterday on Sky Tv . It left me and Suzanne (my wife) with more confusing questions than answers? Good film though