The Iron Claw Review: 6 Ups & 3 Downs

UPS…

6. Not Too Wrestling Heavy

A wrestling movie about a wrestling family is going to have to include some ring time, but there’s always a dual risk of overexposing the actors and filmmakers with unconvincing action and alienating non-wrestling fans with too much grappling.

The Iron Claw strikes a good balance by showing enough snippets of action, especially early on, to get across how popular the Von Erich brothers are in Texas without overdoing the wrestling. The scenes shown are well-worked and convincing enough, thanks to the consulting of Chavo Guerrero Jr. (who had a bit part as The Sheik) and the commitment of the actors themselves.

There is a decent peel-back-the curtain aspect to the film that viewers understand how the wrestling business works while still showing how physically demanding the industry can be. Kevin’s failed attempts to cut an effective promo and a pre-match strategy session between the Von Erichs and Bruiser Brody and Gino Hernandez provide an effective glimpse behind the scenes at what goes into producing the final product.

For any diehard wrestling fan, there is enough action to whet your appetite. And honestly, if someone wants to see longer clips of the Von Erichs wrestling, there are plenty of actual documentaries and footage out there to watch.