My thoughts on The Iron Claw…

“Ever since I was a child, people said my family was cursed. Mom tried to protect us with God. Dad tried to protect us with wrestling. He said if we were the toughest, the strongest, nothing could ever hurt us. I believed him. We all did.”

A film with an abundance of misery, unrelenting storytelling and potent character development that work together to construct a film that is unparalleled in inducing anguish and an authentic connection through the cleverly blended emotions that seamlessly weave in and out of emotions to create genuine, three-dimensional and heartfelt characters that stay true to the story while keeping you engaged throughout. It’s hard to piece together my thoughts and convey them on a film surrounding a true story but from my standpoint, every aspect of the narrative was well-crafted and grasped emotion fantastically with it tearing away at your heart-strings, developing each character flawlessly while simultaneously depicting the hardships, obstacles and both the physical and mental warfare that are both self-inflicted prisons and repercussions of third-party trauma. I have to applaud Zac Efron’s outstanding performance; honestly he was phenomenal with him exceeding in every respect with him encompassing the poignant and devastating story that is the Von Erich’s, each struggle was emphasised to it’s furthest degree, especially nearing the end, I also have to congratulate the rest of the brothers with their marvellous performances that embodied the family’s immeasurable torment.

The soundtrack in combination with the retro visuals made for a wonderful experience, seriously, what’s not to love, it had ‘The Reaper’ in it and I adore that song. So glad I watched this and I do feel that it won’t be my last watch.