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'Warrior' brings new edge, real acting talent to fight film genre

13.09.11

This is an exceptional mixed martial arts movie that focuses less on going for the gold and relies more on a heartfelt, if slightly melodramatic, story that centers on reconciliation within a dysfunctional family.

The narrative is “Raging Bull” (1980) meets “The Fighter” (2010) meets the biblical story of Cain and Abel, focusing on three men: two brothers, Tommy (Tom Hardy) and Brendan Conlon (Joel Edgerton), and their father Paddy (Nick Nolte).

Younger brother Tom is an ex-Marine with a tragic past who returns to his hometown of Pittsburgh to train for an MMA tournament called Sparta, the supposed “Super Bowl of mixed martial arts.” He enlists with the help of his father, a recovering alcoholic 1,000 days sober, despite not being on speaking terms with him due to Paddy’s previous record of alcoholism and spousal abuse.

Meanwhile, across the state, older brother Brendan has retired from fighting and settled down with his wife (“House’s” Jennifer Morrison) while taking a job as a high school physics teacher. In need of more money to avoid foreclosure, Brendan begins to moonlight in low-level MMA contests, which results in a suspension from his teaching job. His only option comes down to entering the Sparta tournament and taking home the $5 million in prize money.

Source: The Gamecock