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It may be lofty praise but a film compared to Fight Club has been added to Netflix – and slotted straight into the top 10.
There’s nothing better in my opinion than discovering a hidden gem so you can one up all your mates by recommending a great film they’ve never heard of – and this certainly won’t be one they’ve ever heard of.
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This film features an iconic former WWE star in the lead role, a trendsetter who transcended wrestling, and is well known for their bald head and hard hitting action movies.
No, it’s not The Rock – but it is his long-time WWE rival 'Stone Cold Steve' Austin.
The movie is a direct-to-DVD release Damage, released in 2009 to minimal acclaim – but it has found a second life on Netflix.
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Debuting at number six in the UK – it has been watched more in the last week than huge releases also in the top 10 such as Dune, Despicable Me 3, and Sing 2.
The movie has a fairly simple plot - a man recently out of prison for murder takes up underground fighting.
The twist? He is taking up this underground fighting to pay for an operation for the daughter of the person he killed.
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A Rotten Tomatoes audience review compared it to Fight Club, saying: “This movie is 'Fight Club' for the Great Recession. Yes, it is a copy-cat film, but in that category it is probably one of the very best.
“First of all, Steve Austin and his ensemble do an admirable job here: When similar WWE figures often can't act their way out of a paper bag, and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is a worthy figure mainly for his charismatic stage presence, Austin is a natural.
“The ending doesn't bring any surprises, but the acting and writing are natural enough to provide some dramatic resonance and tension. T
“The film easily draws us in and makes us care enough about the key characters.”
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Whilst it clearly draws heavily from films like Fight Club, it is a fun time which audiences on Netflix are clearly loving.
Steve Austin leads the cast, but is joined on the film by Walton Goggins.
The prolific actor starred in Damage shortly after the end of The Shield, which Goggins starred in for six years and almost 100 episodes.
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The top review on IMDB praised Austin and Goggins’ acting, as well as co-star Laura Vandervoort.
It reads: “There are some tender sensitive moments in which Steve Austin shows he has some real acting ability.
Yes, there are some brutal fighting sequences, but that is not the core of the story. The core of the story is about doing the right thing, about morality, forgiveness, and redemption.
“Partial credit must go to the cast, not just Austin but the supporting players as well, Walton Goggins and Laura Vandervoort are very good!”
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Topics: Netflix, WWE, TV and Film, Rotten Tomatoes
Michael Slavin