When down-on-his-luck part-time high school wrestling coach Mike agrees to become legal guardian to an elderly man, his ward's troubled grandson turns out to be a star grappler, sparking dreams of a big win -- until the boy's mother retrieves him.
Acting
Giamatti's defeated sighs should be studied in acting schools.
Writing
McCarthy finds poetry in strip-mall New Jersey.
Direction
Never judges its flawed, desperately human characters.
Director
Tom McCarthy
Paul Giamatti
Mike Flaherty
Amy Ryan
Jackie Flaherty
Bobby Cannavale
Terry Delfino
Jeffrey Tambor
Vigman
Burt Young
Leo Poplar
Melanie Lynskey
Cindy Timmons
Alex Shaffer
Kyle
Margo Martindale
Eleanor
David Thompson
Stemler
Nina Arianda
Shelly
Marcia Haufrecht
Gina Flaherty
Sharon Wilkins
Judge Lee
Clare Foley
Abby
Penelope Kindred
Stella
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Real high school wrestler Alex Shaffer was cast as Kyle after McCarthy held open auditions at actual wrestling tournaments. His flat affect isn't acting—it's authenticity.
The film quietly captures post-2008 economic desperation; Mike's law practice crumbling mirrors a generation of failed small-town professionals who never recovered.
US
