Warrior is in the grand tradition of sports underdog movies like Rocky, Cinderella Man, and The Fighter. In Warrior, Tom Hardy plays Tom Conlon--a military man and one time Mixed Martial Arts fighter with a big chip on his shoulder. After returning home from the war, Tom is drawn back into the MMA but now, he has a lot more to fight for. As it turns out, Tom's brother Brendan also use to excel at Mixed Martial Arts, but now he's content living a domesticated life. After hitting hard times however, Brendan too is drawn back into the ring and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out where Warrior goes from there. What's most special about Warrior is that, as is the case with the titles mentioned at the beginning of this review, the fighting is secondary. Director Gavin O'Connor (who directed Kurt Russell to new heights in Miracle) and his screenwriting team really go into who their lead characters are. When we see these men square off with their opponents, it really stands for something. It isn't just about the fighting. Tom Hardy is fierce and intense, and between Warrior, his role in the upcoming Dark Knight Rises, and the rebirth of Mad Max, we're clearly looking at a star in the making. Joel Edgerton (Animal Kingdom) is also a big time star on the rise, and he brings the underdog component to the picture. Rounding out the expert cast is a stellar Nick Nolte who breaks the heart as Tom and Brendan's alcoholic father. Simply put, this is the veteran actor's best work since Affliction. The fighting sequences in Warrior are intense, but its the dramatic character beats that make this movie so memorable. There are a couple of aspects to Warrior that I had issues with. I always found myself questioning how Brendan would be able to take down opponents twice his size. I'm fully aware that a sport like this is just as much mental as it is physical, but there are times when its a bit tough to swallow. I also don't know if I entirely bought into the outcome of the final fight. Still, this is a rousing sport film with real drama and stellar performances and as I walked out of the theater, I felt like I could take on anyone who might get in my way.

Grade: B+