The Amarillo Pioneer’s Film Review series is back, covering many of the big releases that will be greeting audiences soon. Today’s review is for the new film “The Smashing Machine,” starring Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt.

Benny Safdie’s “The Smashing Machine” is unlike anything else audiences are likely to see in theaters this year. A sports biopic set between the years of 1997 and 2001, the film chronicles the start of the career of Mark Kerr, one of the pioneers of professional mixed martial arts. Portrayed by an almost unrecognizable Dwayne Johnson (“Black Adam”), Kerr’s career setbacks, thanks to an addiction to painkillers, and his road to recovery are chronicled in painstaking detail.

At the same time as Kerr is trying to even out his career, he’s also navigating a topsy-turvy relationship with his girlfriend, Dawn. Dawn, who is portrayed by Emily Blunt (“Oppenheimer”), is at one point Kerr’s emotional rock, but then becomes a challenge for him to handle as he deals with his recovery from addiction.

In the midst of all of this, Kerr is trying to achieve one of the top prizes in the sport at that time — victory in the Pride Grand Prix, a martial arts tournament held in Japan. One of Kerr’s close friends and training partners, Mark Coleman — portrayed by MMA star Ryan Bader — is also competing in the tournament, setting up a potential clash between friends.

“The Smashing Machine” is based on an HBO documentary from the early 2000s that centered on Kerr’s career. After the documentary was released, Kerr would go on to have a few more fights before retiring for good in 2009. Some criticism has been aimed at the new incarnation of the story due to its reliance on inspiration from scenes in the original documentary. While this might be a weak point, several scenes that were inspired by the original documentary — such as a discussion between Kerr and an elderly woman in the waiting room of a doctor’s office — work well here.

This is also by far the best performance Johnson has given in his career. Johnson, a former WWE star, has been known for playing big, tough guys in action films like the “Fast & Furious” franchise. One of Johnson’s most recent films before “The Smashing Machine” was “Red One,” which saw him portray a bodyguard to Santa Claus. This should give you some idea of where his career has been up to this point. Here, Johnson gets to explore the emotional depth of a character facing relationship challenges, career struggles, and addiction — all while wearing prosthetics that make him look like a totally different person. This is his best performance and the Oscar buzz surrounding this role for the long-time pro wrestler is very much justified. Even if he isn’t the frontrunner to win, Johnson should and potentially will receive an Academy Award nomination for this role.

Blunt is also great as Kerr’s girlfriend. This somewhat goes without saying, as Emily Blunt is good in nearly every role she takes on. Here, she portrays the toxicity of the relationship well and it also won’t be a surprise if she picks up an Academy Award nomination.

It’s also interesting to see Bader, MMA legend Bas Rutten, and heavyweight boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk on screen here. Bader portrays Coleman, Kerr’s training partner and friend, while Rutten plays a fictionalized version of himself. Meanwhile, Usyk portrays one of Kerr’s early rivals on the MMA scene.

The performances in this film are great. The film does have one major problem though, and that is the fact that it is relatively dull. “The Smashing Machine” seems to be at its best when it focuses on Kerr’s career, but struggles a bit when it comes to his relationship. Unfortunately, most of the film focuses on the relationship, so it leaves something to be desired.

Additionally, the film’s two-hour runtime feels excessive. While certain films do warrant longer runtimes, “The Smashing Machine” is a relatively straightforward story that likely could have been told much quicker. That is a shame, as the film’s slow moments do tend to make the film feel overly long, especially after big MMA-heavy scenes.

“The Smashing Machine”