Warrior: Surprisingly Good

I was expecting "Warrior," the new film set in the world of Mixed Martial Arts (Extreme Fighting), to be good trash. Dumb testosterone-fueled fun. But instead it was an intelligent, heart-wrenching drama that's more about feelings than muscles. This is no dumb beefcake movie. There are definite weaknesses, but overall this is one of the better and more emotionally fulfilling movies of the late summer. I feel it might even become something of a classic, particularly among working-class men.

Joel Edgerton, an actor I had never heard of until now, does quite a good job playing a married schoolteacher on the cusp of middle age struggling to make ends meet. He decides to start fighting again to earn some extra money. He had done this as a young man, so it doesn't take too much work for him to get back into shape. Once back in the ring (or back in the cage), he does much better than he thought he would. Meanwhile, he has to deal with the disapproval of both his wife and his boss, who puts him on suspension without pay.

By coincidence, his estranged brother has also decided to re-enter the ring. The brother is played by Tom Hardy, another actor I'd never heard of. Hardy is someone to watch. His performance gave me chills on almost 10 occasions. Nick Nolte plays their father, in a performance that's so good I suspect Nolte might get an Oscar nomination. -- unfinished