There are winks all over the wrestling-based drama Unstoppable, a film which Matt Damon/Ben Affleck produced, and such are typical for the sports movie. There is the mention of Rocky by having a poster of a film called ‘Rocky’ in the lead character’s bedroom. But that is much more typical for the film, which, debuting at the famous Toronto Film Festival, does not strive for anything more than to become yet another obvious, by-now-tired, and utterly clichéd dramatic story of the against-all-odds type which can be easily found in hundreds of modern movies.
The true story of overachieving wrestler Anthony Robles, born with one arm to a struggling young mother, is given the primary arc we fully expect, which can only get beyond when the film lets its accurate details emerge towards the end. Few films revolve around wrestling, and Unstoppable sometimes directly states this, especially during wrestling scenes that are mainly engaging only slightly.
At some point during the Vietnam War, Jharrel Jerome, best known for his scene-stealing breakout role in Moonlight’s second chapter and his Emmy-winning work in When They See Us, portrays Robles. He is encouraged by his coach (Michael Peña) and mum (Jennifer Lopez), but lacking substantial funding, his options are next to none after he finishes—the search for a scholarship begins.
Often, it is written with one eye on its financing and another on what one athlete may need to be helped with to reach his peak. Rather than Affleck directing, he has hired his long-time editor, William Goldenberg, to make his directorial debut. Even in the scenes when the script does not deal with the more exciting aspects of distinctiveness within the film, based on Robles’s 2012 book, it is easily bored at home and in wrestling rings with clichés.
Whereas with dialogue, it is so overtly physical, the actor must work and condition and manipulate his body in a completely new, much more demanding way so that we will buy that he has no leg. Successful yet slapdash streaming slop like Shotgun Wedding or this summer’s feeble Netflix thriller Atlas has allowed us to forget what she can do with more grounded material. It’s an unusual supporting role for the star, but her guts and warm materialism add depth to family scenes that can often feel a little rote.
Unstoppable is a rousing yet overdone biopic that tries too hard to get us there.
