The Iron Claw Review: 6 Ups & 3 Downs

DOWNS…

3. The Missing Von Erich

As portrayed in the movie, the fate of the Von Erich brothers is tragic enough.

David dies while on tour in Japan, just months before his NWA World Title match against Ric Flair. Kerry loses his foot in a motorcycle accident and eventually commits suicide after a run in the WWF. Mike suffers brain damage from toxic shock syndrome and overdoses on pills. And young Jack Jr. dies years earlier in a terrible accident.

But The Iron Claw completely omits another Von Erich brother who met an untimely death. Chris Von Erich was Fritz and Doris’ youngest son, an undersized wrestler who never could achieve his brothers’ level of success due to his small stature and brittle bones. Chris would commit suicide in 1991, just four years after Mike’s death and two years before Kerry took his own life.

Including Chris’ death would have further magnified the family curse, but it also might have taken screentime from the other storylines. Still, deleting a Von Erich brother – whose story would have added to the overall tale – seems like a big transgression for a biopic.

Less offensive (except for AEW fans) was the minimizing of Lance Von Erich, the fictional cousin brought in to WCCW when Mike was out of action due to toxic shock syndrome. Played by Maxwell Jacob Friedman in the movie, Lance’s role as the Von Erich cousin was cut down to just a few short action sequences with no real screentime given to his backstory. Perhaps a director’s cut will restore MJF’s scenes.