Star Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Lyndsey Gavin, and Ryan Bader
Director: Benny Safdie
What’s Good: The performances and the overall production value are quite high, with great sets and costumes.
What’s Bad: The film’s structure and pacing are all over the place, and it doesn’t feel like it adds anything to the narrative.
Loo Break: Like it is usual with films that have a bit of structural problems, the second act can become a bit heavy and boring at times, so there is your opening.
Watch or Not?: Yes, this is a watch, especially if you are a Dwayne Johnson fan, and you would like to see him do something different.
Language: English (with subtitles).
Available On: Theaters.
Runtime: 123 Minutes
User Rating:
When the Safdie Brothers delivered Uncut Gems not long ago, viewers understood that the brothers could basically turn anyone into a fantastic actor, with Adam Sandler delivering a career-best performance and, for some, being the best actor of that year. Now, it is the time for Dwayne Johnson, aka The Rock, who has become one of the biggest movie stars in the world, but hasn’t really proved that he is a good actor, until now, delivering like Sandler before him, a career best that will surely open a lot of doors for him in cinema.
The Smashing Machine Movie Review: Script Analysis
Sadly, we have to start with some one of the most negative aspects of the film. Don’t get me wrong, the film is not bad, not awful, but it has several issues that stop it from being great, and one of those issues is the script and its structure. We understand that the Safdie Brothers have separated themselves from a directorial duo to now working on their own films, with Josh Safdie delivering his solo movie, Marty Supreme, later in the year. Both directors have a lot to prove, but it seems Benny is lacking in some particulars of the writing department.
The dialogue feels very unnatural at times, like not only the delivery but also the words themselves, which is strange because in previous films, the delivery of the dialogue was one of the best things about Safdie movies. However, it is the structure and the back-and-forth in time that really hurt the film. It feels like our main character’s story isn’t the most interesting. This also makes you feel like others should be the protagonist, which hurts even Dwayne Johnson’s fantastic performance.
The Smashing Machine also seems to want to be more of a classic drama than a film that can be both a sports film and a drama as well. Sadly, it took me out of the film a couple of times, with visions of Warrior with Tom Hardy and Joel Edgerton coming to my mind, and I wished I was watching that film with this sense of style and performances. Will see what happens with Josh and Marty Supreme, but let’s hope his movie doesn’t suffer from these same issues.
The Smashing Machine Movie Review: Star Performance
The Smashing Machine will mostly be remembered for Dwayne Johnson’s performance. The movie star has finally found a sense of belonging on the screen when playing someone different from himself, which seemed to be a problem for him for most of his career, or at least, if this movie is evidence of it, a lack of trying and playing it safe. Johnson is not playing it safe here in The Smashing Machine, and the film is better for it. He probably won’t receive an Oscar or anything like that, but this is huge for him.
Emily Blunt also smashes the screen, but this is usual for her; she feels like she is ready to be the lead on something big, but Hollywood keeps presenting her as a secondary character to others. It’s a shame, but she is amazing here.
The Smashing Machine Movie Review: Direction, Music
The director brings with him the same chaotic energy that made his previous films so fascinating to watch, but those films had a sense of control and focus, even among the chaos, something that The Smashing Machine lacks. However, the style is quite entertaining at times, but sadly, it is not consistent enough in bringing that entertainment.
The score by Nala Sinephro is also outstanding, delivering something fresh and different that brings energy and fits the chaos of the film perfectly, to the point that it can be too much at times, but maybe that is the point, as it is the story of a man breaking boundaries.
The Smashing Machine Movie Review: The Last Word
The Smashing Machine is good, not great, as there are too many rough edges when it comes to dialogue, structure, and pacing, but it is definitely a film to watch thanks to its impressive performances, including Dwayne Johnson, and also taking a look at the wonderful world of contact sports, at least a bit, because the film really wants to be more of a classic drama, which is not bad, but also not the most interesting.
The Smashing Machine Trailer
The Smashing Machine released on October 10th, 2025.
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