Review: In ‘Unstoppable’ an inspiring but clichéd sports drama about a wrestler with one leg

Antoni RoblesThe story seems almost tailor-made for a Hollywood movie. Born with one leg, the fitting one, he overcame the prejudices of those around him and his own physical limitations to turn out to be a wrestling champion. Even though coaches at top wrestling programs didn’t see his potential, he didn’t get discouraged, counting on his own determination and that of his mother, Judy (Jennifer Lopez) unwavering faith in him.

The film version is aptly titled “Unstoppable” and may have a limited theatrical release starting Friday before being available on Prime Video on January 16. Directed by William Goldenberg, the film’s Oscar-winning editor “Argo” “Unstoppable” marks his feature debut as a director and has all of the makings of a gripping sports drama that is bound to have viewers cheering in theaters or on their couches. You must be a little bit of a grinch to not get sucked into the hurdles and triumphs, especially with such a fascinating lead role Jharrell Jerome. And yet, for a story about a guy who exceeded all expectations, the film itself is kind of conventional.

Avoiding the temptation to inform his birth story, Unstoppable’s story begins at the tip of highschool. He has way back decided to not depend on a prosthesis and feels comfortable in his body. His sport is wrestling, which, as he’ll later joke, he selected since it was the one sport where the opposite competitor couldn’t escape from him.

While he’s winning at the highschool level, exciting college programs like Iowa aren’t eager about benefiting from him. His best deal is a full ride at Drexel in Philadelphia, which everyone agrees is healthier than going to one of the more famous schools. However, setbacks on the sector force him to take motion, and he soon enters Arizona State University, attempting to prove himself to educate Sean Charles (Don Cheadle), who has already advised him to go elsewhere.

Mom is not her oldest son’s biggest cheerleader, but Judy has a lot happening. She gave birth to Anthony on the age of 16, and once we meet them, she is married with 4 young children with Rick (Bobby Cannavale), a toxic husband and father who has long emphasized the virtues of creating the fitting decisions and being a man and providing a family (which , spoiler, doesn’t). It’s a very one-sided role for Cannavale, principally a shorthand villain who’s at all times lurking just across the corner, able to smash every thing, whether it’s dinner or Anthony’s plans to maneuver across the country.

Regardless of how true that is, “Unstoppable” relies too heavily on clichés of working-class domestic drama and Rick’s meanness, which is maybe a bit offensive to Judy’s experience. This is a woman who managed to attain amazing things (revealed at the tip) despite being a single mother of 5 children. While Lopez is as eye-catching as ever, it’s hard to not wonder what the character would have looked like if one of the three credited writers had been a woman. Judy has her own arc and demonstrates her agency in a mic-drop-like scene, but it looks like more of a temporary moment of focus once you discover out what she’s done.

The movie is de facto at its best when it’s about sports, the inconceivable training, including running up a rocky hill that Anthony does on crutches, the games, and Anthony’s relationships with the coaches who turn out to be de facto father figures to him. Michael Peña, as his highschool coach, is especially impressive in his limited scenes, and Cheadle is at all times a joy to observe. But ultimately, that is Jerome’s show, and a good one at that. Let’s hope this will likely be the primary of many leading film roles for him.

“Unstoppable” — premiering on Amazon MGM Studios in select theaters Friday and streaming on Prime Video on Jan. 16 — is rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association for “strong language and thematic material.” Duration: 116 minutes. Two and a half stars out of 4.