‘Fighting With My Family’ is an enjoyable sports underdog story with a fun edge

Posted on March 1, 2019

By MARK VIOLA

I started watching professional wrestling when I was in high school in the late 1990s, tuning in to see The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin and Mick Foley pummel each other in the ring. I kept watching through college, but then drifted away for other entertainment pursuits.

As such, I had never heard for the WWE wrestler Paige until I saw the trailer for the new film, “Fighting With My Family,” which documents her journey from her family-owned wrestling outfit in England to becoming WWE Diva Champion in 2014.

The film was produced by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who became interested in Paige’s story after seeing the documentary, “Fighting With My Family.” Johnson also stars in the film as himself. Stephen Merchant, one of the creators of the U.S. version of “The Office,” wrote and directed the movie, while also appearing in the film as well.

At its core, “Fighting With My Family” is an underdog sports story about a person who doesn’t seem to be the prototypical example of their chosen sport but finds a way to climb to the top anyway. There’s enough quirky characters – provided by Paige’s family and friends – to keep things interesting, and Merchant, no stranger to comedy, delivers plenty of laughs to keep the story going to the end you know is coming (especially if you’re a modern fan of wrestling and already know Paige’s history).

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