The Iron Claw (15)

★★★✭ The Iron Claw is captivating cinema based on a genuinely larger-than-life wrestling family that became a dynasty. ~ AllMove.

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Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Holt McCallany, and Lily James star in the true story of the inseparable Von Erich brothers, who made history in the intensely competitive world of professional wrestling in the early 1980s.

Through tragedy and triumph, under the shadow of their domineering father and coach, the brothers seek larger-than-life immortality on the biggest stage in sports.

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★★★★ This sentimental wrestling tragedy will chill you to the bone. ~ The Independent.

★★★★ In this biopic of a real-life family of professional wrestlers beset by tragedy, indie director Sean Durkin grapples with the consequences of living life according to a fake ideal. ~ The Scotsman.

★★★★ A bulked-up Zac Efron is an amazing sight in this tragic wrestling drama. ~ The Guardian.

★★★★★ An eerie, beautifully executed study of duty, grief and wrestling, boasting an excellent cast, and a leap forward for its director. A heavyweight collective has just entered the ring. ~ Empire.

★★★★ Sensitive rather than sensationalist, this is an engrossing grapple with a wrestling dynasty that was blessed with pecs appeal yet dogged by bad luck. ~ Total Film.

★★★★ The moments that stay with you are those that still have something of that child’s eye view of wrestling: a baffled gaze up at fragile giants, lost in a sport where nothing and everything is real at once. ~ Financial Times.