The Iron Claw [Review]
With The Iron Claw, Sean Durkin delivers one of the best films of the year.
Image: A24
A24’s The Iron Claw, the impressive third feature from director Sean Durkin (Martha Marcy May Marlene, The Nest), sees him return to his theme of families buckling under pressure, this time by dramatizing the true story of the Von Erich family.
The Von Erich family was a wrestling dynasty. Fritz Von Erich (Holt McCallany), the patriarch, trained his sons—Kevin (Zac Effron), Kerry (Jeremy Allen White), David (Harris Dickinson), and Mike (Stanley Simons)—to follow in his footsteps as pro wrestlers. Tragedy strikes as the sons fall victim to what they believe is the “Von Erich curse,” but really this is about how the sons break under their father’s selfish, narcissistic hubris as he pushes them to bring home the glory he couldn’t—the NWA world heavyweight champion belt.
I wasn’t familiar with the Von Erichs’ history, and purposely didn’t do any research before watching the film. Reading up on it later, I learned that certain events are combined or condensed, some events and people are left out, but this is totally acceptable to serve Durkin’s purposes in the film; this movie is about wrestling only on the surface. He delivers a gut punch about brotherhood, legacy, and the effects of abusive or indifferent parents. That doesn’t mean to say wrestling is a footnote, either—the family’s passion for the sport and its theatricality really shines, and we do see the cutthroat competitiveness of it all.
Image: A24
The movie is filled with powerhouse performances. Zac Efron is amazing in his nuanced turn as the powerful but sensitive Kevin, the only one of the brothers who begins to see through the haze. Jeremy Allen White, an actor to look out for after his lead role in The Bear, doesn’t disappoint. These guys also put on an impressive amount of muscle for these roles. Holt McCallany is also fantastic as the senior Von Erich who crushes his sons. However, the real anchor for the film is Maura Tierney, playing Doris, the boys’ mother. We see her strain and crack over the course of the movie, as she realizes what is happening with her family and the cost of her aloofness over the actions of her husband.
Durkin and his team were particularly effective in building emotional tension. I’m going to need to see The Iron Claw again to dissect all of the creative choices on a technical level, to study this masterclass in drama more closely. It begs for a second viewing. The more I think about The Iron Claw, the more I love it. This is a must-see for 2023, one of the best films of the year, and should be enjoyed on the big screen.
The Iron Claw, directed by Sean Durkin, will be in theaters on December 22, 2023.
