Intense drama with brilliant acting! 6/10

Rating: 6/10 (25 May 2015)

Review: Although the acting in this film is superb, I did find it quite dull and really slow. The true story is about the wrestling Olympic gold medalist, the Schultz brothers who have a really close relationship until Mark Schultz gets taken in by a wealthy John du Pont who wants to mentor him through the Seoul Olympics. After convincing his brother, Dave Schultz, to come on board, he moves his family to the luxurious du Pont estate were the rest of the USA wrestling team are training. After certain events, Mark starts to distance himself from du Pont which causes friction in the once happy household. It also affects Marks performance in wrestling and John starts to breakdown after the lose of his mother. The storyline has enough drama to keep you glued to your seat and the fact that it is a true story, it does make it quite interesting but the tone and mood of the film made it quite depressing. The performances from Carrell, Ruffalo and Tatum were brilliant and I loved the chemistry between the brothers. The director chose not to delve into why John du Pont had such a weird state of mind so you have to come up with your own conclusion, why he done half of the things that he did. I know that he had a issues with pleasing his mum, who seemed disappointed with everything that he done, but he did have a touchy aura which put everyone on edge. Anyway, it's a watchable movie which gives an insight into the secret world of wrestling but for entertainment, I did find it quite boring it parts. Watchable!
Round-Up: I really can't believe that this movie made a lose at the box office! For the performances alone, it should have made double the budget but the audiences must have found it a bit much to watch. It is full of intense drama and there are some emotional moments so you do have to be in the right mood to watch it. The director, who also made Moneyball and Capote, has only made 6 movies in his career so he's done quite good for his short time in directing. I did think that the film ended quite abruptly because you don't get to see how they done at the Olympics or what happened to them after they left du Ponts estate. Anyway, the main element which made this movie watchable was the acting. Apart from that, the storyline was interesting but it seemed to hit a brick wall after a while.
Budget: $24million Worldwide Gross: $16million
I recommend this movie to people who are into their biopics about the famous Olympic gold medalist, the Schultz brothers and there relationship with the wealthy John du Pont. 6/10