By Anna Husted EBS FILM CRITIC
“Fighting with my
Family” is the best kept secret of 2019. An independent film written and
directed by one of the tallest men in the industry, Britain’s Stephen Merchant,
looming large at 6 feet 7 inches, “Fighting with my Family” is simply fantastic
and has made its way easily into my top 20 films of the year.
Based on a true
story, “Fighting with my Family” is about the Knight family and their
relationship with wrestling. Ricky and Julia Knight, played by Nick Frost and
Lena Headey, respectively, have raised two kids with aspirations of becoming
professional wrestlers in their little town in England. When the World
Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) crews come to London, both of their kids, Zak and
Saraya, played by Jack Lowden and Florence Pugh, are given the opportunity to
try out, but only Saraya, who goes by the wrestling name “Paige,” makes the
cut.
“Fighting with my
Family” is a coming-of-age film about Saraya and Zak grappling with their own
and each other’s successes. While Saraya heads off to Miami to train with the
best WWE coaches, played by the charming Vince Vaughn and Dwayne “The Rock”
Johnson, Zak keeps coaching his own group of ragtag kids in England, including
teaching a blind boy how to fight.
The Knight family
dynamics are cleverly written, realistic and entertaining; each has their
unique relationship with each other and their unique wrestling style to match.
While Saraya
struggles to fit into the world of “model” wrestling, Zak’s insecurities about
his dreams of fighting in the WWE haunt him, and the rapport between these two
siblings is shaky, yet tender. They care deeply about each other, which manifests
in jealousy—albeit a common phenomenon in the world of siblinghood.
But the film also
comes with a dose of reflection on personal values and giving people a chance
to show more than what meets the eye; Saraya is surrounded by older women who
are strong but possess the classic attributes of “sexy,” whereas she has an
unrefined Norwich, England, accent, dark hair and is shorter than your typical
model. She immediately feels left out but realizes that she didn’t give the
other women a chance either and only assumed they didn’t understand her
struggles.
“Fighting with my
Family” is just a darn good film: It’s entertaining from start to finish, with
some fun cameos, witty writing and its focus on themes of family in a
non-conventional, non-sappy way. Watch “Fighting with my Family.” You will not
be disappointed.
“Fighting with my
Family” is available to rent on YouTube or Amazon. It is also available at
Bozeman Public Library.
Anna Husted has a
master’s in film studies from New York University. In Big Sky she can be found hiking
a mountain or at the movies at Lone Peak Cinema. When not gazing at the silver
screen or watching her new favorite TV show, she’s reading, fishing or roughhousing
with her cat, Indiana Jones.
