Early into “The Iron Claw,” the patriarch of the Von Erich wrestling dynasty ranks his sons.
“The rankings can always change,” he tells them.
The moment captures the film beautifully – this is the story of sons who tried to please their father and never felt they were doing enough.
Based in truth, the drama leans into those “Great Santini” moments and shows how professional wrestling played with its participants’ minds. Living under what others said was a curse, most of the Von Erichs met dreadful ends. They weren’t happy celebrities. They were young men who didn’t measure up.
From left, Harris Dickinson, Zac Efron, Stanley Simons and Jeremy Allen White star in "The Iron Claw."
Directed by Sean Durkin, “The Iron Claw” gives Zac Efron his best role to date. He’s Kevin Von Erich, the stable one of the bunch, who tried to play father when their selfish dad couldn’t.
Steeping the film in ‘70s looks and manners, Durkin uses a variety of methods to tell the story. Because several participants died tragically, this could have been four funerals and a wedding. Instead, it’s a look at the sleeper hold Fritz Von Erich (Holt McCallany) had on his sons and their inability to find a way out.
Durkin puts them in those dank Texas wrestling rings, plays with shooting techniques and, for good measure, squeezes in some personal stories to make this seem something other than “Daddy Dearest.”
While the Von Erichs’ mother (Maura Tierney) and Kevin’s wife (Lily James) provide momentary escape, they’re not enough to overcome the verbal takedowns Fritz offers.
He’s such an unforgiving figure it’s surprising Durkin didn’t do more to uncover his childhood.
Zac Efron stars in "The Iron Claw," a look at wrestling's Von Erich brothers.
Disease, drugs and depression become the big Von Erich killers. As a result, it’s difficult to separate one brother from another. Efron stands out because he’s telling the story and trying to explain how less-than-glamorous the career was.
While ring action is left to a few big moves (there’s a rivalry but it doesn’t go anywhere), the wrangling largely takes place at the dinner table where dad controls the narrative.
Cutting corners on the true story (there’s a brother who doesn’t factor into the film), Durkin gets plenty of tears and a cautionary tale about parents and their desire to live unfinished lives through their children.
Efron is quite good as the leader of the pack; Tierney is barely recognizable as the beleaguered mom.
McCallany, though, has the film in his hands and doesn’t waste the focus.
“The Iron Claw” (which refers to a wrestling hold) may not be the happiest film of the year, but it’s certainly one of the most revelatory.
Fans of professional wrestling will love seeing Ric Flair (Aaron Dean Eisenberg) and others in the field but they won’t be able to ignore what might have been. The Von Erichs were a force, no doubt about it. But they shouldn’t have had to fight for a parent’s love.
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