Let’s face it. The National can just make about anything better. We’ve heard their music, led by baritone Matt Berninger, elevate such films as The Company Men and Faster last year. They provided an original song for Thomas McCarthy‘s great drama Win Win this past spring, and now they are back in Gavin O’Connor’s MMA fighting/family drama Warrior starring Tom Hardy, Joel Edgerton and Nick Nolte.
The film is bookended by two songs from the group, beginning with Start a War off their 2007 album Boxer, then About Today runs throughout the exceptional finale. Lionsgate has cut a nice promotional trailer/music video for the latter song, which you can see below in today’s Daily Distraction. We’ve already reviewed the film, calling it an “effective, mostly honest look at brotherhood, fatherhood and redemption. Neither cynical or dopey, the film finds a believable middle-ground within an almost unbelievable concept.”
The film will also have a sneak preview tomorrow (Sunday the 4th) at 7PM, and you can find out more details here on how to get tickets. You can also see one of the best scenes from the film below.
Synopsis:
Rising stars Tom Hardy and Joel Edgerton command the screen as two estranged brothers facing the fight of a lifetime in Lionsgate’s WARRIOR, a moving, inspirational action drama from acclaimed director Gavin O’Connor (Miracle).
Haunted by a tragic past, Marine Tommy Conlon (Hardy) returns home for the first time in fourteen years to enlist the help of his father (Nick Nolte) to train for Sparta, the biggest winner-takes-all event in mixed martial arts history. A former wrestling prodigy, Tommy blazes a path toward the championship while his brother, Brendan (Edgerton), an ex-fighter-turned teacher, returns to the ring in a desperate bid to save his family from financial ruin. But when Brendan’s unlikely, underdog rise sets him on a collision course with the unstoppable Tommy, the two brothers must finally confront each other and the forces that pulled them apart, facing off in the most soaring, soul stirring, and unforgettable climax that must be seen to be believed.
A rousing ode to redemption, reconciliation and the power of the human spirit, WARRIOR is also a moving testament to the enduring bonds of family. WARRIOR stars Joel Edgerton (Animal Kingdom, Star Wars: Episode III), Tom Hardy (the upcoming The Dark Knight Rises, Inception, Black Hawk Down), Jennifer Morrison (“House”, Star Trek) and Nick Nolte (Tropic Thunder, The Thin Red Line). The film is directed by Gavin O’Connor; screenplay by Gavin O’Connor & Anthony Tambakis & Cliff Dorman and story by Gavin O’Connor & Cliff Dorfman. Lionsgate and Mimran Schur Pictures present a Lionsgate / Mimran Schur Pictures production. A Solaris Entertainment and Filmtribe production.
Warrior hits theaters on September 9th.