Fighter’s personal addiction battles

FORMER professional wrestler Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has turned things up a notch for his latest film, The Smashing Machine (15), out today at the Regal Picturehouse in Henley.

Johnson plays Mark Kerr in a sports biopic and true story about his career in mixed martial arts and the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Kerr’s girlfriend, Dawn (played by Emily Blunt), supports him but, as he faces the concept of losing for the first time, he falls into a life of narcotics addiction.

Written and directed by Benny Safdie, the film has a running time of just over two hours.

Also out is French comedy Better Days (15), in which Suzanne (Valérie Bonneton) is raising three children after the death of her husband. She has turned to alcohol, but when she is involved in an accident, social services send her to rehab.

There she meets other women fighting their own battles, including orphaned Alice, jaded actress Diane and damaged Chantal, and they are all put into detox.

Under the care of car workshop teacher Denis (Clovis Cornillac), who coaches them in preparation for a car rally in Morocco, they slowly overcome their problems and take on their challenges.

A must-see for Swifties, showing today, tomorrow and Sunday, Taylor Swift’s album release film The Release Party of a Showgirl (TBC) is also out.

Featuring the world premiere of the music video for The Fate of Ophelia, the film also has behind-the-scenes footage from the video shoot, brand-new lyric videos and stories about the songs in the new album, The Life of a Showgirl.

Continuing are The Roses (15), One Battle After Another (150 and Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale (PG).