After the terrible Walk Like a Panther last year, the last thing you might think we need is another British film about wrestling. Fortunately, Fighting with My Family has a lot of things that the worst film of 2018 didn’t…some excellent performances, a coherent script, likeable characters and a lot of heart.
The Knights are a wrestling mad family in Norwich. The parents, Ricky (Nick Frost) and Julia (Lena Headey) are ex-grapplers now running their own low rent wrestling federation, putting on shows starring their son Zak (Jack Lowden) and daughter Saraya (Florence Pugh). When the kids are giving a chance to try out for the WWE, only Saraya (who adopts the name Paige) gets picked and has to travel to America on her own to attempt to make her dream come true.
The fact that the appeal of wrestling still eludes me, did not stop my enjoyment of this film. It is based on a true story that was told in a Channel 4 documentary that Dwayne Johnson saw when he was filming in England. Johnson produces and has an extended cameo, as does Stephen Merchant who both writes and directs.
Admittedly, the story follows a tried and trusted underdog beating the odds arc. Saraya seems to have all the talent, but struggles to fit in away from her family, until she is given a chance to fight the champion. However, it is very well told. There are enough laughs, mostly provided by the excellent Frost, but it also confronts Zak’s problems, when he can’t cope with being rejected, in quite a moving way.
The star though is Pugh, again showing what a terrific young actress she is, totally believable as the up and coming star. The film isn’t afraid to admit that the fights are fixed, which is refreshing. But it does mean that the climactic fight doesn’t have the jeopardy it should. If the result is predetermined, Paige’s triumph in that contest against the reigning champion does not seem so much of an achievement. That’s a small quibble in what is an enjoyable movie.
Rating: 7 out of 10