Is it a tragedy that Mark Kerr, a titan of the early years of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, put himself, his opponents, and his now ex-wife through grueling physical and emotional trials for a fraction of what the sport’s top competitors can earn a generation later?

With his gritty-but-opaque Kerr biopic, The Smashing Machine, writer-director Benny Safdie—one half of the sibling duo that made Good Time and Uncut Gems—seems to suggest the answer is yes. Safdie concludes his solo directing debut with a title card that notes the financial disparity following a coda wherein the 56-year-old Kerr appears as himself.

It’s odd, then, that The Smashing Machine is being sold as an acting showcase for 53-year-old star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who successfully parlayed his own professional w

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