A story of redemption and reconciliation between estranged brothers
Warrior is a 2011 mixed martial arts fight movie about Tommy Conlon and his dysfunctional family. Tommy is an ex-marine who wants to return to the MMA boxing ring and, therefore, enlists the help of his former coach and father, Paddy Conlon.
Paddy is a recovering alcoholic, and his alcohol addiction contributed to his family breakup. Tommy has a brother, Brendan Conlon, who is estranged from the family because of past betrayals.
The two brothers share a passion for MMA, and as life becomes hard for Brendan, a high school teacher, he returns to the fight ring to provide for his family. Brendan soon becomes a rising underdog in the ring, which sets him on a path to reunite with his brother and family.
Warrior is a story about family, forgiveness, and redemption. The script is well balanced with intriguing fight actions without forgetting to provide an engaging backstory of the beefing-up brothers. It sheds light on the effects of abusive family relationships and shows that scars of domestic violence can last a lifetime.
For instance, 14 years later, Tommy is still full of rage while his brother is no longer close to the family. The scars of the past lead him to try his best to be better than his father, which makes Brendan a perfect story of redemption.
The story of dysfunctional families resonates with many families today resulting from domestic abuse. The narrative delves into the brothers’ struggles to break free from the trauma of their childhood that led to their separation. The script divides our sympathies as it goes past the sports in the ring to tell the backstories of our leads, which perfectly alleviates our interest in the characters.
The dysfunctional family drama is the attention grabber in this movie, and the sympathetic characters keep viewers glued from the beginning to the end.
Brendan is a determined, contained, and thoughtful family man who is more technical in his fight approach and uses willpower and endurance to win the tournaments.
On the other hand, Tommy uses rage, which has been pent up for the last 14 since he left with his mother to escape his father’s abuse. He is all about sprawl and brawl in the fight ring, using the fights to direct his anger. Tommy is a mysterious character with anger issues and resentment and is not big on forgiveness.
In contrast, his brother Brendan is a calm and collected person beloved by everyone, including his students, and he is an attentive father. Their father has hurt both characters, and they have no one to look up to for guidance as they try to mend their relationship.
As the older brother, Brendan takes up the role of building a relationship between them and bringing about reconciliation, highlighting the central theme of reconciliation.
The supporting characters significantly enhance the narrative and keep the plot. The mix-up with real-time MMA fighters enriches the supporting cast and ensures the embodiment of real-life MMA scenes, making the movie even more thrilling.
Overall, Warrior is a highly entertaining sports movie with intense fight scenes that set it apart from other sports movies. In addition, the movie is not only about sports but delves into crucial themes of family dysfunctions arising from domestic violence due to alcoholism.
The main characters are complex opposites, which divides the audience’s attention, making it even more interesting as they try to root for their favourites. The script leads to an emotional climax, stirring up the thrill despite its predictability.
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Verdict - 8.5/10
8.5/10