Early on in The Iron Claw, Kevin Von Erich (played by Zac Efron) is asked by his date what he wants in his future. Kevin shrugs. So long as he's with his brothers, he'll be happy. It's a sweet moment--a real Save The Cat moment--that's only made sweeter when his date, Pam (played by Lily James), diagnoses him with the need to take care of his younger brothers, which Kevin admits is the the truth.
Full spoilers for The Iron Claw below.
It sometimes takes a while for new writers to discover how to be mean to their characters. They can get attached to these make-believe people in their heads, when really, being mean to your character is what it's all about. There's no story, no meaning, unless you put them through the emotional (and sometimes physical) wringer.
But nobody wants to watch endless torture either. Tragedy after tragedy befalling a character risks become melodramatic or tasteless. It takes real writing talent to take a character like Kevin Von Erich, (who is a real person; more on that later) establish him as already having everything he wants at the beginning of the movie, taking it all away piece by piece, and still somehow end the story on a positive note.
All three of Kevin's younger brothers die. It's tragedy after tragedy, made even more tragic by knowing that this is a true story. (Side Note: in real life Kevin had a fourth younger brother who also died, but who was cut from the script for pacing and believability reasons--a topic that deserves a whole essay) But what, from a story perspective, does this accomplish? Well, it pushes the main character to the edge. In a world--our world--where death can take our loved ones from us in such senseless, rapid succession, we're left with two options. We succumb to the feelings of despair and hopelessness, or we push through and find new meaning, new loved ones. Kevin takes the latter route, finally finding the space in his heart to fully commit to loving his wife and kids, despite the tremendous loss of loved ones he'd already endured.
On the surface, The Iron Claw is a movie about a family of wrestlers. Dig a little deeper and you'll find a story about grief and loss and finding meaning in life (and death). It's a story that could only have been told by a writer who truly understands the power of being cruel to a character.
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