Variety
An improbably effective and affecting mix of raw emotions and exciting smackdowns.
Full review
Warrior
Mixed Martial Arts drama starring Tom Hardy (Inception, Bronson), Joel Edgerton (Animal Kingdom) and Nick Nolte.
Ex-Marine, Tommy (Hardy), returns to his hometown of Pittsburgh and enlists his father (Nolte), a recovered alcoholic and former coach, to train him for an MMA tournament awarding the biggest purse in the history of the sport. Meanwhile, his brother, Brendan, (Joel Edgerton) a former MMA fighter, returns to the amateur ring to provide for his family after being suspended from his job.
Past recriminations and betrayals keep Brendan bitterly estranged from both Tommy and his father. But when Brendan's unlikely rise as an underdog sets him on a collision course with Tommy, the two brothers will sort it out in the ring.
2011Rating: M, contains violence & offensive language140 minsUSA
ActionDramaSport
- Director:
- Gavin O'Connor ('Pride and Glory')
- Writer:
- Gavin O'ConnorAnthony TambakisCliff Dorfman
- Cast:
- Tom HardyJoel EdgertonNick NolteJennifer MorrisonNoah EmmerichDenzel Whitaker
Warrior / Reviews
Total Film
A tougher, meaner animal than close cousin The Fighter, with Hardy, Edgerton and Nolte at their pugnacious, heart-wrenching best. Shame O’Connor diluted the pay-off.
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Roger Ebert
Brings such complexity to the final showdown that hardly anything could top it - but something does, and Warrior earns it.
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Los Angeles Times
It shows promise but finally hits things so hard, both literally and metaphorically, that it's hard not to feel pummeled yourself by the time it's over.
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Hollywood Reporter
It grabs you in early scenes, intense though low-key before all hell breaks loose, then keeps you riveted to its mostly male characters.
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A.V. Club
For all its titular bravado, Warrior never lets the audience forget the economic and spiritual desperation driving its two main characters, who bleed for the screaming arena crowd in exchange for their shots at redemption.
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