FIGHTING WITH MY FAMILY is a heartwarming comedy based on the incredible true story of WWE Superstar Paige(TM). Born into a tight-knit wrestling family, Paige and her brother Zak are ecstatic when they get the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to try out for WWE. But when only Paige earns a spot in the competitive training program, she must leave her family and face this new, cut-throat world alone. Paige’s journey pushes her to dig deep, fight for her family, and ultimately prove to the world that what makes her different is the very thing that can make her a star.

There is nothing like a good sports biopic to get the blood pumping and the tears rolling. Creed, for example,did just that. So, imagine what a female-led sports biopic about an eyeliner-wearing underdog, from the wrong side of the tracks (and the pond), could do to your heart and tear ducts? Fighting with my family had all the ingredients to get your pulse racing, but regrettably ended up being quite vanilla.

It is really funny in parts but is hardly the laugh-a-minute-fest the trailer made it out to be. British humour (and colloquial expressions) when applied correctly, can be blisteringly sharp and witty. Not in this film.

There is little depth, without getting schmaltzy – whenever there’s a turnaround/revelation Paige looks knowingly at her mom/coach/fellow wrestlers, there’s even some winking. Her brother calls her at the exact moment she needs him to, her mom turns on her dad when Paige needs her to… It is all too disappointing, because the rough around edges family saved by wrestling could have been such an enjoyable angle.

I was hoping to learn more about WWE, and possibly understand the phenomenon, but sadly the narrative delivers little else than ‘underdog wins the day’. It is predictable. Even the brother’s simultaneous journey is expected – he doesn’t get in, he acts out, he gets over it. I’m over it.

There is one brilliant element to the film. Florence Pugh is magnetic as Paige, even though the characters on paper is oh, so thinly written. Pugh elevates this mediocre film to something watchable, and in the process, she makes Paige accessible, even relatable, and if you’ve watched footage of the real Paige (probably in persona), you’ll see what an accomplishment that is.

I understand it is a light-hearted comedy that is meant to entertain. Yet, comedies, much funnier than this one, have asked questions and turned stereotypes around, without preaching or wagging a finger. Thus, I was disappointed at the fact that Fighting with my family does not allude to the darker side of WWE, a side discussed in the documentary which this film is based on. It also does not look at the complex, fractured life of Soraya-Jade Bevis, known professionally as Paige. But then isn’t the show and the glitz what the WWE is all about? A fixed outcome? A Greek tragedy in spandex?