Fighting with My Family
United Artists | Release Date: February 14, 2019 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
68
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 38 Critic Reviews
Positive:
33
Mixed:
5
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperFeb 21, 2019
Fighting With My Family works as a cheeky but never condescending story of one of those “chin-up” working-class British families so often featured in the movies, and of course primarily as the story of an undersized, overmatched outcast who is determined to succeed against all odds. Read full review
80
The Observer (UK)Mark KermodeMar 3, 2019
It’s a delicate balancing act that Merchant handles with aplomb. Read full review
80
The TelegraphRobbie CollinFeb 28, 2019
For a film that spends so much time with its thighs around other people’s throats, it has a surprisingly delicate touch. Read full review
80
The New York TimesManohla DargisFeb 13, 2019
Like its amiable, irresistible ménage, Fighting With My Family softens its rougher edges with humor. It’s often broadly funny but never mean or patronizing; it takes the Knights, their eccentricities and quixotic aspirations seriously, but not enough to squelch the fun. Read full review
80
Time OutJoshua RothkopfFeb 13, 2019
Merchant never loses our interest: He’s made a sparkly, strutting film that doesn’t apologize for or look down upon its heroes. A “soap opera in spandex” is what Hutch calls pro wrestling to his trainees, and the movie follows suit. Who doesn’t love a melodrama in tights once in a while? Read full review
80
Film ThreatAnthony Ray BenchJan 29, 2019
It’s a touching and funny tale about a family chasing their unconventional dreams in the world of sports entertainment. It has such a magnificent cast, and the story is interesting enough to entertain both wrestling fans and non-wrestling fans alike. Read full review
80
Screen DailyTim GriersonJan 29, 2019
The film benefits from Pugh’s charismatic performance and writer-director Stephen Merchant’s cheery mixture of crowd-pleasing sentiment, wry laughs and genuine sweetness. Read full review
78
IGNRosie KnightJan 29, 2019
Fighting With My Family delivers on comedy, action, and a sweet message of acceptance and strength at its core. It might be a bit too wrestling-heavy for some, but the strong cast, interesting real life story, and a magnetic lead mean this black sheep sports story is a feel-good flick with chops that might finally put WWE Studios on the map. Read full review
77
Paste MagazineOktay Ege Kozak Feb 28, 2019
With a narrative that adheres to such universal themes, Merchant reaches beyond the film’s wrestling fan core audience and constructs an inspiring story everyone can enjoy. Read full review
76
TheWrapYolanda MachadoJan 29, 2019
Yes, it’s a wrestling movie, but Fighting With My Family is also a delightful entry into a genre that has too few inspiring stories for young girls. It’s a warm-hearted underdog saga with a feminist undertone and a celebration of everyone’s inner misfit. Read full review
75
The Seattle TimesMoira MacdonaldFeb 21, 2019
Take “Billy Elliot,” trade the refined world of ballet for the “soap opera in spandex” of professional wrestling, swap the preteen boy for a young woman, throw in The Rock — because every movie is better with The Rock, right? — and you’ve got Fighting With My Family, a shaggily likable underdog tale. Read full review
75
Philadelphia Daily NewsGary ThompsonFeb 21, 2019
It’s easy enough to guess where this is going, but the movie gets the details right, and the relationships play out in a satisfying way, aided by Merchant’s consistently funny writing and light touch. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleFeb 20, 2019
Refreshing and worth seeing. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTom RussoFeb 20, 2019
It’s the mark of many a standout sports movie that you don’t necessarily have to be a fan to enjoy the story. The real-life pro wrestling portrait Fighting With My Family is a hugely entertaining case in point. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsFeb 20, 2019
In other words, nothing much held me back from enjoying writer-director Stephen Merchant’s engaging, charismatically acted underdog fable. Read full review
75
New York PostJohnny OleksinskiFeb 14, 2019
Although the film is about Paige’s unlikely rise to TV stardom, what grabs us most is the eclectic Knight family running a scrappy professional wrestling gym on a shoestring. It might be the biggest missed reality-TV show opportunity ever. Read full review
75
The Associated PressJake CoyleFeb 13, 2019
Pugh never looks quite at ease in the ring in Fighting With My Family, but her performance is so layered with ambition and self-doubt that the film exceeds its familiar framework. Read full review
75
Entertainment WeeklyLeah GreenblattFeb 5, 2019
Most of Fighting’s narrative moves are as choreographed as any undercard match — and the outcome as clearly forecast — but the tears brought on by the movie’s last ten minutes of rhinestoned Rocky triumph taste salty, and real. Read full review
75
RogerEbert.comNick AllenJan 31, 2019
Even though Fighting with My Family is undoubtedly about branding the WWE as a fantasy factory, its biggest strength is in its wit and surprisingly big heart, celebrating underdogs who rumble for what they love. Read full review
75
The PlaylistGregory EllwoodJan 29, 2019
Overall, “Fighting” works thanks to Merchant’s witty screenplay, Pugh’s transformative performance, Vaughn’s inspired off the cuff one-liners (likely improvised) and a cast that clearly respects the Bevis family story. Read full review
70
New York Magazine (Vulture)Emily YoshidaFeb 19, 2019
Merchant is more brutally honest than most sports movies — or any kind of rising-star movie, for that matter — about failure, and it makes Fighting With My Family better than it needs to be. The entire cast is a pleasure, particularly the dynamo Pugh. Read full review
70
Vanity FairK. Austin CollinsFeb 19, 2019
The story, which is humbly well told and good-humored, if familiar, is enjoyable enough not to write the film off. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesJustin ChangFeb 13, 2019
Within the context of a sport that thrives on artifice, writer-director Stephen Merchant spins a story whose emotions feel entirely genuine. Read full review
70
Rolling StoneDavid FearFeb 12, 2019
The movie even plays like a wrestling match. It’s Underdog Cinema 101. Read full review
70
VarietyDennis HarveyJan 29, 2019
Fighting With My Family may not be an Oscar contender but it has enough wit, heart, energy and good cheer to make it a fun watch even for non-wrestling fans. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleRichard WhittakerFeb 27, 2019
It may be a simple, old-fashioned, underdog-gets-their-day, feel-good story, but it sure as hell will leave you feeling good. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubA.A. Dowd Feb 13, 2019
Fighting With My Family is a shamelessly formulaic sponsored post of a crowd-pleaser that’s also, in its best moments, a genuinely stirring celebration of chase-your-dreams moxie. Read full review
67
The Film StageJordan RaupFeb 3, 2019
Fighting with My Family doesn’t pull too many unexpected punches, but as someone who has never watched a split-second of wrestling in their life, the fact that I was engaged with this underdog story is a testament to the success of Merchant’s first solo directing effort. Read full review
67
IndieWireKate ErblandJan 29, 2019
The beats of Fighting With My Family are comfortingly familiar, and the soap opera pomp of the wrestling world is eye-popping to both fans and neophytes alike, but it’s Pugh that is always fresh, surprising, and wily. The film might not hit hard, but Pugh never stops doing just that. Read full review
63
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliFeb 22, 2019
Fighting with My Family is as likable as it is generic. Pugh’s performance is the best thing about the movie but the story, despite Merchant’s comedic flourishes, feels stale at times. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Barry HertzFeb 22, 2019
After all, it’s a movie about professional wrestling – the blows may feel real, but the match is fixed from the very beginning. Read full review
63
Movie NationRoger MooreFeb 21, 2019
Yes, the jokes are mostly low-hanging fruit, and quite a few of them you’ve seen and heard in the trailers. But they’re still funny. And Merchant didn’t let the trailers give away the whole movie. Not by a long shot. Read full review
63
Slant MagazinePeter GoldbergFeb 11, 2019
While it pays lip service to the fascinating theatrical norms of pro wrestling, the film ends up expending most of its energy on its search for barriers that Paige can break through. Read full review
60
EmpireTerri WhiteFeb 26, 2019
Packed with plenty of heart and relatability — and a powerhouse performance from Jack Lowden — it never fully resolves the tension between the grit and glamour of the wrestling worlds the Knight family inhabit. Read full review
55
The AtlanticDavid SimsMar 1, 2019
Sheer force of personality is the main ingredient of any great sports movie, and Pugh has enough of it to pull the story along. But this is a star performance that deserved an equally dazzling script. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeJan 29, 2019
Fighting With My Family reminds us several times that the sport is as much about charismatic storytelling as it is about skill. Judged by that standard, the film is far from belt-worthy. Read full review
42
ConsequenceDominick Suzanne-MayerFeb 21, 2019
Between its continuous insistence on broad humor and its lack of broader context about the industry period in which Paige came up (she was among the first womens’ wrestlers in WWE to break out when the division gained traction after years of public degradation), Fighting With My Family ultimately reveals itself as a shallow take on a genuinely fascinating story. Read full review
40
The GuardianPeter BradshawFeb 27, 2019
Comedy and irony are not allowed to encroach on the film’s upbeat message, and the drama doesn’t reach out beyond a wrestling fanbase. Read full review
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