Battling our inner demons and outer ones

Beneath the bruises, The Smashing Machine asks a question worth pondering: What does it mean to succeed? For Kerr, the temptation is to equate success with titles, victories, and dominance in the ring. Yet those highs are fleeting. Outside the ring, his life is crumbling—relationships broken, health compromised, identity fragile. This tension echoes a biblical truth: that pride precedes the fall. Safdie’s film doesn’t offer a neat resolution.

Still, it suggests that success is not found merely in strength or accolades, but in humility, perseverance, and restored relationships.

That is the joy of the Gospel – that whilst we can’t be perfect, Jesus is, and that we don’t have to do it all, because He has accomplished everything on the cross. And He offers authentic restoration, healing, and purpose that can only be found in a relationship with Him.

“What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?” - Mark 8:36 (ESV)