First Match is a 2018 drama about a troubled teenage girl who decides that joining the boys wrestling team is the only way back to her estranged father.
Sport as a way out for those who feel there is none might not be the most original idea in movies but what is these days? With Olivia Newman‘s latest First Match, that sport is wrestling and it’s the catalyst for more than just escape, it’s the struggle to redefine a once lost relationship. While there’s a lot that feels familiar, this is nonetheless a terrific little story with a strong lead and all sorts of inspiration that never lets you down.
Monique (Elvire Emanuelle) is a young black woman is Brooklyn, in and out of foster care. She’s rough, untrusting, angry, and desperate to get by, even with a huge chip on her shoulder. She’s quick to fight, thrives on trouble, and has no real friends. Her father, Darrel (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II), a former wrestling star, is just out of prison though he’s not told her, instead laying low working where he can and scraping by in food lines. When she sees him on the streets, she tries to reconnect, and then joins her high school wrestling team to try and impress and corral her anger into a new start. She soon learns the real meaning of responsibility and what it means to trust again.
Written by Newman, First Match doesn’t stray too far from the formula, the twist being a girl learning the ropes in a genre dominated by boys. That’s half the message here, with the edgy Monique taking on the boys head first, refusing to be pushed around. Of course, this also makes it hard for her to realize what being on a team means, as they naturally reject her, as do those she faces on the mat in competition, but it doesn’t take long before she discovers the value of letting people in.
What works really well here is how Newman sidesteps many of the tropes we’ve come to expect, even as we stay close to the center. There are no real bullies here, with Monique herself actually the meanest of the bunch, her attitude and aggressive behavior making her the one causing all the trouble. That’s a smart turn and this allows the story to focus on her evolution rather than retreading all the old clichés we’ve seen so often before.
The story is really about the relationship between daughter and father, and this leads to some conflicts, with Darrel using her to make money in an underground all-female fight club, and this gives the film its moral seesaw as Monigue is subject to genine brutality but endures in hopes of trying to save her father. It’s this interplay between her hardened but naive past and need for genuine love and support that is best played out, with Emanuelle delivering big. She’s a natural talent on screen, her soleful wide eyes and authentic presence keeping First Match a moving experience.
As the film progresses, it loses a little of its initial ambitions, leaning more on Monique’s fighting than the emotional journey of what it means to be a girl in this violent and male-centered world, but maybe that’s half the point. Either way, this is a grounded, well-acted story of a powerful young woman. Easy recommendation.