There is no shortage of inspirational sports films, but when handled correctly they still manage to be inspiring and great stories to tell. The latest hitting the mat in the genre is Unstoppable starring Jharrel Jerome, Bobby Cannavale, Michael Peña, Anthony Robles, Don Cheadle and Jennifer Lopez from William Goldenberg making his directorial debut. Could this wrestling drama manage to pin the competition, or will it fail to make weight?

 

Unstoppable follows the inspiring true story of Anthony Robles, who was born with one leg but whose indomitable spirit and unbreakable resolve empowered him to defy the odds and pursue his dreams. With the unwavering love and support of his devoted mother, Judy, and the encouragement of his coaches, Anthony fights through adversity to earn a spot on the Arizona State Wrestling team. But it will demand everything he has, physically and mentally, to achieve his ultimate quest to become an NCAA Champion.

 

I honestly hadn’t been following this film so, outside of knowing it was following Robles knew nothing of it or the cast so was pleasantly surprised with the impressive cast involved. The film follows a straightforward story approach with little background about Robles younger days and his situation and instead dives right into the wrestling in the opening sequence. This is a smart choice since the focal point is here most so the time while we still witness his own trials on and off the mat.

 

I was already interested in hearing Robles’s story, but then learning that he was in the film as the double for Jerome made it all better. Despite the film sticking to general storytelling, it keeps it moving well enough so that you get invested and inspired by his dedication and drive. I love that we didn’t get the typical Hollywood cliché characters and instead felt like it was keeping to his actual story. This allows us to just go through everything Robles is going through without the unnecessary added drama since he had enough adversity all on his own.

 

The whole cast are great with everyone seemingly going all in to bring this powerful story to life and do justice to the real-life people they are portraying, good and bad. For the film to really work Jharrel Jerome has to be able to bring the truth to his performance of Robles and he does just that. You can see dedication and struggle in his eyes and body even when he is saying nothing. He brings the wide range of emotions needed to bring this powerful performance to life and he does a great job.

 

The wrestling matches are well handled and with the real Anthony Robles on the mat it truly pulls the viewer deeper into every minute of it. Whether you are fan or don’t even understand the rules of wrestling you can’t help but cheer him along in every match thanks to the excellent structure and execution of each of them.

 

I can’t lie, I though this was going to be one of those kinds of cheesy sports films due to my lack of knowledge about it and while it isn’t breaking down the walls in the