Based on a true story, Unstoppable introduces us to high school wrestler Anthony Robles (Jharrel Jerome) who lives with his mother Judy (Jennifer Lopez), stepfather Rick (Bobby Canavale), and his siblings. Anthony has dreams of wrestling on the biggest stages in college, but has one major obstacle to overcome; being born with one leg. Anthony works to defy expectations and become a champion wrestler, while taking some challenging detours along the way.
If you’re at all familiar with inspiring, based on a true story sports films, this review isn’t going to pretend that Unstoppable breaks new ground. If you know the story beats within the subgenre, you know what you’re getting when you sit down to watch this film. Normally, this would sound like a recipe for a disappointing or ho-hum viewing experience, but Unstoppable avoids this fate by operating within the box it’s confined to pretty well.
The first mark the film manages to hit is through its emotional, but touching portrayal of the family dynamic within it. We witness Judy struggle to balance being a doting mother, contributing to the household financially, and trying to navigate her deteriorating marriage to unpleasant spouse and the pall of unease he creates around the children, particularly his thorny relationship with her oldest son Anthony who is not his. As you root for Anthony to overcome his obstacles, the performances of Lopez and Canavale who play a sympathetic mother and detestable stepfather respectively, creates additional investment in seeing her reach happiness in addition to Anthony’s athletic success and for Rick to receive his comeuppance. Its basic storytelling we’ve all seen before, but the actors’ believable chemistry and portrayal that bring the characters’ stories and lives to life in a way that garners both sympathy from the audience in general and empathy for those who may see themselves or loved ones through their experiences.
Which touches upon the second element of Unstoppable that helps the film avoid becoming too rote and that is the performances of the actors onscreen. They are led of course by Jerome who continues to shine whenever a camera is placed in front of him. The determination and grit that was obviously essential in driving the real Anthony Robles toward greatness and overcoming disability is perfectly portrayed by through his portrayal as well as the conveyance of the emotional moments when Anthony experiences failure or his family encounters hard times. Jerome is the emotional anchor of the film and is the main element in elevating it into what it is. In addition to the support he receives in support from Lopez and Canavale, Jerome is joined by strong supporting performances from Don Cheadle as his college coach Sean Charles and Michael Peña as his high school coach Bobby Williams. Having such strong actors in what could have been treated as just two side characters is what makes Unstoppable a stronger film than it perhaps should have been.
Unstoppable is a crowd pleasing, feel good film that is chock full of very good actors operating near the top of their games. The performances of Jharrel Jerome, Jennifer Lopez, Bobby Canavale, Don Cheadle, and Michael Peña take what on the surface is your regular inspirational tale and turn it into something entertaining and resonant.
Image: Amazon MGM Studios
