The Last Champion

Disgraced former wrestling champ John Wright (Cole Hauser) returns to his hometown. He's an outcast among the town folks. He's back to sell the family home after the death of his mother. Michael Miller is the struggling student wrestler. His mother is a drunk and they are too poor to buy meat. He's caught stealing from the grocery store. When the supportive wrestling coach Frank Stevens dies, John is hired as the new coach.

This filled with emotional melodrama. I would prefer less on-the-nose melodrama. The villains are over-the-top villains. I do appreciate Cole Hauser trying to underplay his performance. It's probably the only way to do his acting in this case. It's good that his personal flaw isn't explained away or passed on to the bad guy. I was half-expecting that the villain had somehow forced John to take the steroids. At its core, this is a very simple story of redemption. Its simplicity is a great strength but it may have contributed to some simplification of the villain characters.

A movie that values hard work, determination, kindness and GOD in 2020!!! Uh, yes please! I would have given it ten stars but gave it nine for the predictability factor, other than that, I was very happy to find this gem tonight. Loved it!

Honestly this was a great movie with a beautiful story. I've heard people saying it was bad because "it didn't have enough wrestling." Well here's the thing... if you're looking to watch a high school wrestling match, I recommend going down to your local high school to do so, because this isn't what this movie is or is intended to be. This movie is about second chances, redemption, perseverance, and community, and it's portrayed through the use of a high school wrestling team and a former Olympic wrestler.

So if you're into sports related movies and love a good story to go along with it, this movie is for you and I highly recommend.

I'm a big fan of films like The Karate Kid and Rudy. I love a good sports movie and Cole Hauser is becoming one of the greats. This is a deeply felt sports drama without the schmaltz that often accompanies films like this. Every performance was authentic the wrestling action was very realistic and I had an easy time following it though I am not too familiar with the sport.

The acting was on point. But the story.... See Hoosiers....