Warning: this article mentions suicide which some readers may find distressing.
Netflix have added a film which many consider ‘the most depressing ever’ which is based on a true story.
The true story is so disturbing that the film was forced to leave out a major detail for fear it would simply be too upsetting for viewers.
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Netflix has added a number of underrated films in the last few days.
These include the Oscar Nominated Angelina Jolie film Maria, as well as the underrated 2000s classic comedy Role Models, starring Seann William Scott, Paul Rudd, and Superbad star Christopher Mintz-Plasse.
None of them, however, have quite the overwhelming critical praise of The Iron Claw, added to Netflix this past Saturday.
The film follows the real-life story of the Von Erich family, a group of wrestling brothers who made their name in the regional wrestling of Texas.
Starring Zac Efron, the film has an all-star cast with the High School Musical alumnus being joined by Lily James, Jeremy Allen-White, Harris Dickinson, Holt McCallanay, and a number of real-life wrestling faces playing legendary names from the 80s like Ric Flair and The Iron Sheikh.
The movie released in 2023 to a score of 89% on Rotten Tomatoes and was widely considered to have been snubbed at the Oscars.
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It is not exaggerating to say as well that, across critics and fans, it is widely agreed to be one of the most depressing and tragic stories ever made.
One fan on Reddit said the movie made them want to ‘cry themselves to death’, whilst another said: “This movie completely broke me and I don’t say that often but damn.
“I knew very little about the family going into it but had heard it was based on a true story and depressing. But this movie was more depressing than I had imagined lol especially the last 15 minutes absolutely brutal.”
One of the most popular reviews for the film on Letterboxd however said: “Crazy they actually made the story less sad in order to make it more believable.”
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As hard as it is to believe, The Iron Claw, does leave out a major detail of what happened in real life to make it more believable and less depressing.
MAJOR SPOILER WARNING FOR THE IRON CLAW
Across the course of The Iron Claw, Efron’s Kevin Von Erich is clear about two things: their family has some sort of curse and all he wants in life is to live with his brothers forever.
The first is proven absolutely true over the course of the movie when, one by one, Kevin’s brothers tragically pass away.
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Their older brother, Jack, died at the age of six. How he died is one of many details left out to make the film watchable as Jack was electrocuted by an exposed wire and drowned in a puddle.
The next of his brothers to die was David Von Erich, who passed away at 25 on a trip to Japan after health complications caused his sudden death.
Later in the film, Mike and then Kerry Von Erich both commit suicide, Mike after becoming disabled due to an in-ring accident and Kerry after losing his leg the night he won the family’s first World Championship.
This happened in real life except one major detail was left out – a full other brother who died of suicide.
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Chris Von Erich was left out of the film with Mike being a combination of the two real life brothers.
Chris suffered from asthma and brittle bones but tried to wrestle anyways, however, was largely unsuccessful. He killed himself with a shot to the head in 1991 at the age of 21.
When speaking about the decision to leave out Chris, director Sean Durkin said: “There was a repetition to it, and it was one more tragedy that the film couldn’t really withstand.”
He admitted that Chris was in the script for five years and taking him out was an ‘impossible choice.’
Durkin stated that Kevin, who is the only son of Fritz Von Erich to live past their 20s or 30s, said he ‘understood’ when he told him of his decision.
The Iron Claw is available to watch on Netflix in the UK now.
Topics: Netflix, Zac Efron, Film, TV and Film
Michael Slavin