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Pro Wrestling Invades Hollywood with ‘The Iron Claw’

“The Iron Claw” captures the tragedies and triumph of the Von Erich family

Justin Barrasso

Pro Wrestling Invades Hollywood with ‘The Iron Claw’
Pro Wrestling Invades Hollywood with ‘The Iron Claw’ /

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The Iron Claw captures the tragedies and triumph of the Von Erich family

Finally, the Von Erichs get their moment to shine.

Awash in tragedy, it is still a joy to see the famed wrestling family recognized on the big screen.

Courtesy The Von Erichs
Courtesy The Von Erichs

The Iron Claw finds the perfect blend of wrestling and storyline. And despite the tragedy, there is reason to believe this is a triumph for one of wrestling’s royal families.

Contents

  1. The (Online) Week in Wrestling
  2. Continental Classic semi-finals set for tonight
  3. Tweet of the Week

Hollywood takes great liberties with the phrase “based on a true story”. This depiction of the Von Erichs was no exception, as Hollywood embellished key details, including titles, matches, and altogether omitting one of the Von Erich brothers (Chris Von Erich, the youngest brother, who died by suicide in 1991).

There are moments throughout the film when truth and fiction blurred, yet it never strayed too far from the real story. A seminal reason The Iron Claw has been fondly received is that director Sean Durkin did not allow this to go too far into fiction, instead blending together details to highlight the rise and fall of the Von Erich family. And while there were negatives–the casting of Ric Flair left a lot to be desired, making it hard to believe there was no one better equipped for the role–the positives made this film extremely enjoyable.

Courtesy A24
Courtesy A24

The casting of the Von Erichs was superb. Zac Efron is extremely believable as Kevin Von Erich, as is Harris Dickinson as David, who appeared poised to be the first NWA world champion from the family before tragedy struck. On paper, Jeremy Allen White is too small to play the hulking Kerry Von Erich, yet he captured the role with a sincere authenticity.

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Even lesser-known Mike Von Erich was brought to life in extraordinary fashion by Stanley Simons, who used a kind, sweet disposition to juxtapose his inner-struggles. The complicated Fritz Von Erich is equal parts protagonist and antagonist, which Holt McCallany nails in his portrayal of the grizzled family patriarch. Maura Tierney shines as Doris Von Erich, revealing her masked pain through the pursing of her lips.

Yet, for as talented as that ensemble was in bringing the Von Erichs back to life, the film would have been hollow if it hid away from wrestling scenes–or if the wrestling was flat-out bad. Fortunately, the wrestling is fantastic.

Chavo Guerrero Jr. is the stunt wrestling coordinator. Decades later, it was a wonderful detail that the Von Erichs and Guerreros are still intertwined.

Courtesy A24
Courtesy A24

The Iron Claw is centered around the “Von Erich curse”, a plague that torments the family. After the death of the oldest son, Jack, who was electrocuted and then drowned at the age of seven, director Sean Durkin does a masterful job of detailing the rise of the Von Erichs through the success of Kevin, David, and Kerry. It all builds to Kevin’s wedding, where the foreshadowing is clear: tragedy is coming.

And that is the beauty of the film. Even though you know it is coming, unavoidable and painful, the story is so rich that you cannot divert your eyes. There are cameos from Harley Rice, Bruiser Brody, and Gino Hernandez, and plenty of wrestling scenes that are filled with joy. There is also the inevitable, as the family falls apart and conjures up endless heartache.

Courtesy A24
Courtesy A24

There is a scene in heaven that stood out. It showed a different glimpse of the Von Erichs, one that is not often highlighted amid all their sorrow. And that is another reason why this film needed to be made: it needed to tell a different side of the story.

The (Online) Week in Wrestling

  • For the first time since 2014, CM Punk returned to the ring for WWE. He did so in style at a live event at Madison Square Garden, defeating Dominik Mysterio, who shined in defeat.
  • In a major move, Hiroshi Tanahashi was appointed President of New Japan Pro-Wrestling.
  • I thought Carmelo Hayes would defeat Kevin Owens, which did not happen. The match reinforced how Hayes’ future is bright, and the win sets up the potential for Owens to eventually fight Logan Paul for the U.S. title.
  • No, I was not expecting a Christmas day Twitter battle between Chris Jericho and CM Punk’s “Brawl Out” attorney over the backstage fight last year at All In.
  • Katsuyori Shibata has a new full-time home in All Elite Wrestling.
  • This is a difficult watch. Brodie Lee remains extremely missed, inside the ring and out of it.

Continental Classic semi-finals set for tonight

Even with three matches to go, the Continental Classic has already exceeded its goal in AEW.

Two semi-final matches take place tonight on Dynamite, with the winners advancing to the finals at the Worlds End pay-per-view on Saturday.

The two bouts to decide the pay-per-view encounter are a triple threat match featuring Jon Moxley, “Switchblade” Jay White, and Swerve Strickland, as well as a singles bout pitting Bryan Danielson against Eddie Kingston.

Looking at the field, the first names to cross off are White and Swerve. White’s feud with Ricky Starks will likely be his focus moving forward, while Swerve is destined for a run as world champion. By losing to Moxley, he has already set up his first challenger whenever he wins the belt. That is the beauty of this tournament–like the G1 in New Japan, it should constantly be setting up new feuds and stories.

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That was on display here, as there was significant development with Mark Briscoe (who is beginning to find his stride as a singles wrestler), as well as with Daniel Garcia (proving to himself he can succeed) and Jay Lethal (learning that he cannot succeed without the help of others).

The way this tourney was booked, Kingston should avenge his earlier loss suffered against Danielson. That would put him in the finals, where he will likely fight an even greater rival in Moxley. Kingston has already defeated Claudio Castagnoli in this tournament; could he run the table and defeat two more Blackpool Combat Club members in Danielson and Moxley?

We’ll see how tonight plays out, but my picks to advance are Kingston–who will finally overcome Danielson–and Moxley, who will be awaiting the chance to humble his longtime friend in the finals.

Tweet of the Week

A happy and safe new year to all.

Published
Justin Barrasso
JUSTIN BARRASSO

Justin Barrasso has been writing for Sports Illustrated since 2014. While his primary focus is pro wrestling and MMA, he has also covered MLB, NBA, and the NFL. He can be reached at JBarrasso@gmail.com and followed on Twitter @JustinBarrasso.

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