A gripping sports movie with great emotional power

Rating: 7/10 (25 August 2015)

The sports genre isn't exactly the best genre around. There are some classics like Rocky and Raging Bull but most modern ones seem to have the same problems. They reuse the same clichés, they barely feel original at all, and most of them are predictable from the very start. But every now and then, a good sports movie comes out. Million Dollar Baby was an inspirational movie with a shocking and heartbreaking finale and 42 was well-acted, well-written, and pretty original in terms of clichés. Then there's Warrior.
After ex-marine Tommy Conlon returns home, his father trains him to enlist for SPARTA, the biggest wrestling event in martial arts history. But he finds out that he has to go up against his brother.
This movie contains a simple plot which may not seem too impressive but the way its emotional power moves you is how impressive it is. Both brothers are damaged in their own way and we witness how they cope with their problems throughout the movie. At the end, they finally confront and face off in an unforgettable climax which will blow you away.
This movie is made better by its terrific acting. Joel Edgerton and Tom Hardy both give terrific performances. Their performances are emotionally powerful and they engage the viewer to the movie's plot. Hardy may be known for playing Bane but he plays his performance in this movie much better. It's a shame that this isn't the movie which got him famous.
As for the music, the score is really nothing special as it consists mostly of tunes we've already heard of but the soundtrack is the shining part to it. It contains a huge range of note and chords and it perfectly sets the mood for certain scenes. Some scenes like the ending wouldn't be as good without its soundtrack.
As much as I'd like to call this movie a masterpiece, there is only one thing I didn't like about it. I didn't really feel that the military aspect was necessary for 1 reason. It wasn't really necessary for a sports movie given what was going on in it. It felt kind of out of place and it could've been left out. It served kind of as a distraction from the main plot also.
So in conclusion, this is an amazing sports movie which shows that while the sports genre isn't as amazing as it once was, it's not completely long gone. This is an amazing movie. It could've been a masterpiece without the military aspect but it's still definitely worth a watch because of how well-written it is.