Review
UNSTOPPABLE – Review
Generally, sports films aren’t for me but UNSTOPPABLE is an exception, because this remarkable true story is more that an inspiring sport film but also a true story of human character, strength and determination, and even love and family. It is more than it seems at first. The true story of champion wrestler Anthony Robles, born with only one leg but with an unstoppable drive to succeed in the sport he loves, is inspiring but so is the personal story that goes with it. Robles faced a lot of challenges from the start but had one stroke of really good luck of having a supportive, loving parent in his teenaged mother. Actually, UNSTOPPABLE is not really about sports (although it does have impressive wrestling scenes), but about human courage and drive, and well, heart.
Anthony Robles faces challenges beyond just having been born with one leg, and dealing with the obstacles that creates for his athletic dreams. Anthony and his mother, and all his younger siblings form a loving Latino family but they barely scrapping by financially and things are made more precarious and complex by his mother’s unreliable, bossy husband.
The film tells two emotionally powerful true stories, the sports one and the family one, in parallel, creating a uniquely uplifting and universal human story, both inspiring in its refusal to quit and its capacity for love. UNSTOPPABLE sports an impressive cast, with Jharrel Jerome as Robles, supported by Jennifer Lopez, Don Cheadle, Bobby Cannavale, Michael Pena, and even the real Anthony Robles in wrestling scenes that blend him and the young actor playing him, in an startlingly effective FX.
The film shows Anthony Robles as more than a remarkable athlete but a person of remarkable inner strength, character, and kindness, while still being a fearsome fighter on the wrestling mat. It is inspiring but all done without a false note or sentimentality.
Jharrel Jerome plays Anthony Robles who we meet as a high schooler, a star wrestler with dreams of college, and the oldest child in a large Hispanic family that is barely scraping by financially. Jennifer Lopez plays his mother Judy, the rock holding the family together. Judy had Anthony when she was only 16 and mother and son are exceptionally close, and in many ways, Anthony is her rock as well as the source of her hopes. Bobby Cannavale plays Judy’s husband Rick, Antony’s stepdad and the father of his younger siblings. While Rick can be fun and entertaining, he can also be demanding and critical, particularly towards Anthony. The younger kids all look up to Anthony, and depend on him and their mother, while their loud-mouthed dad bosses everyone around. Worse, Rick likes to drink, is unreliable and has trouble holding a job, putting even more on Judy. Things don’t get better as the story unfolds.
Anthony dreams of becoming a NCAA champ but he is turned down by his first choice college, University of Iowa, which is widely considered to have the best wrestling program in the country. The coach quickly dismisses Anthony from consideration, feeling he is too big a gamble for a program already on top. His other top-pick colleges also pass him over. Although Drexel offers him a scholarship, he decides to go to Arizona State University, so he can stay home and help his mom. When he later goes to the mat against a top-seeded wrestler from University of Iowa, it’s time for some pay back.
The two threads of Anthony’s life are told in tandem, sometimes seems to mirror each other, but it is like two stories, with Anthony often the only connection. While UNSTOPPABLE has the usual basic outlines of any fact-based sports story, the personal one that is told long side it gives it an extra depth, and human connection.
The excellent wrestling scenes deserve special mention, as the FX are impressive, even if you are not a wrestling fan (which I am not). The real Anthony Robles appears in the wrestling scenes, where the film uses camera work, special effects and editing to merge him with the young actor Jharrel Jerome. The effect is seamless and fascinating. Watching Robles turn the tables on opponents by wrestling on his own terms is quite something, and you get a real sense of why some opponents complained that having one less leg to grab was actually to Robles advantage, as wily, flexible Robles slips away from their grasp. The scenes are quite thrilling, and satisfying, to watch, after Robles faces such dismissive treatment by some coaches or opponents.
The cast is superb in both these story lines, as is the storytelling from Oscar-winning film editor-turned-director William Goldenberg. As Anthony, Jharrel Jerome is in nearly every scene, and worked hard to build up his upper body muscle mass, master Anthony’s Arizona accent, his smooth movements on the crutches Anthony used all his life and, importantly, his wrestling moves, so fans of the sport would feel they were watching the real thing. Jennifer Lopez is excellent as his mother Judy, a complex character who is more than just a support for her son, but someone with her own issues. While Bobby Cannavale could easily made Rick a one-note villain, he makes him a more complicated character, haunted in his own way but with misplaced anger taken out on the family.
Fortunately for Anthony, his high school coach Bobby Williams is more of a father figure. Michael Pena is a steady rock as the high school coach, who stays involved even after his young friend goes on to college. Don Cheadle, as always, is excellent as Arizona State wrestling coach Shawn Charles, coming across at first as a hard-nosed, even unfeeling, but gradually softening as he learns the depths of this young wrestler’s inner (and outer) strengths. Michael Pena is steady rock as Anthony’s high school coach who still has his young friend’s back as he goes on to college.
Unable to get a wrestling scholarship, Anthony also takes a job on top of everything else, as a cleaner at the airport, where he wins over everyone on the crew with is positive nature and work ethic.
What Anthony is doing as he pursues his wrestling dreams and what he copes with at home are both enormous challenges – and to have to juggle them at the same time, and successfully, is more than you would think anyone could do. Yet that show of strength and character is exactly why this is such a great true story. If you feel in need for a little break and uplift from depressing news, this well-made, true-story drama can be just the tonic.
UNSTOPPABLE debuts streaming on Prime Video on Thursday, Jan 16.
RATING: 2.5 out of 4 stars
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