Unstoppable is a biographical sports drama film recently released on Prime Video that is really not much different from the usual works of the genre, it is only the personal story of the protagonist that distinguishes it from any other film. The plot follows the life and achievements of Anthony Robles, a young man from Arizona who beat all odds to fulfill his dream of winning the NCAA national wrestling championship. Overall, Unstoppable tries its best to be as inspiring and triumphant as it can, but the same old tropes and the film’s adherence to the tried and tested design of sports dramas make it a forgettable watch.
Spoiler Alert
What is the film about?
Unstoppable begins with a young man going through a rigorous exercise routine in his bedroom while a small television plays a motivating speech by Tom Brands, the famous American wrestler and Olympic gold medalist. The protagonist is also clearly inspired by the fictional character of Rocky, as evident from the posters all over the room’s walls, and is surely on the way towards achieving success, backed by the many small trophies and medals announcing his achievements. But the biggest challenge in the life of this young man, Anthony Robles, is that he has had only one leg since birth because of congenital amputation. Irrespective of this disability, though, Anthony dreams of pursuing wrestling as a sport in college, and so the night of the High School Nationals Championship Final is of extreme importance to him. This is where the film takes us very soon, with Anthony’s coach, Bobby Williams, preparing him mentally for the fight that is about to come.
Anthony is evidently a bit distracted by a group of scouts from Iowa University, the college of his dreams, as he hopes to be selected for the university team and also get a fully funded academic package. Bobby brings him back to the present, and as Anthony steps onto the wrestling mat, a rigorous spirit drives him towards success, despite the remarkable fact that he competes in the regular format of the tournament, meaning that none of his opponents have physical disabilities. The young man does not in any way seem to be lacking the strength of his missing leg and uses his mobility and quick reflexes to defeat the opponent wrestler. Despite this great achievement, though, of winning the high school-level championship, Anthony is not able to grab the attention of the Iowa scouts, and they instead go for the safer choice of the fully abled wrestler whom he had just defeated.
Quite used to such subtle instances of discrimination, Anthony keeps hoping that Iowa State University will grant him a scholarship and is not too keen when his ever-supportive mother, Judy, is able to arrange for a program from Drexel University. Although Drexel offers him a fully funded college education and a confirmed spot on the wrestling team, he is not as excited as his mother after hearing of the chance. This is not only because Drexel is far away from his home, meaning that he will have to move away from his beloved family, but also because the college does not have a reputed wrestling program. Anthony wants to be trained by the very best coaches so that he can have a good chance at competing in the NCAA championship. As Iowa, or any other better colleges, still do not reach out, Anthony decides to join Arizona State University, where his education will be funded, but he will have to be a walk-on member of the wrestling team, meaning that his position in the team is not guaranteed.
Does Anthony get selected for the ASU wrestling team?
When Anthony goes to meet the head coach of the ASU wrestling team, Sean Charles, the latter makes it clear that he will have to prove his worth in order to be selected, and the young man starts to prepare himself for the trials. Meanwhile, he had put in an application at Iowa State University as well, and when they outright rejected his application, Anthony finally joined Arizona State University to train and play under coach Charles. In his freshman year, he goes through all the rigorous training exercises, which are extra difficult for him because of his disability, but Anthony never lets it come in the way of his dreams. Even when the entire roster is made to run around the track field with heavy weights in their hands, Anthony puts a sling around the weights and carries it on his shoulders, as his hands are occupied with the crutches.
He does not want to get any unfair advantage over the others in any respect, even though he is technically already at a disadvantage against them. When the rest of the team goes through a very difficult trek, or run, through the Phoenix Mountains, Anthony does not give up, even though he gets injured on the way up and bleeds profusely. Although it is a race up to the peak for the rest of the team, Anthony knows that it would be enough for him to just complete the course and prove his mettle, and he does just that, instantly impressing the coach and the whole team as well. One apparent characteristic of the young man is that he is very quick at making friends, and he can impress people with ease, both because of his charming personality and also his dedication towards fighting for his goals.
However, the first major setback to his college wrestling career comes at the beginning of sophomore year, when Coach Charles gathers the whole team and announces that wrestling has been cut from the roster of sports to be officially held at the university for the year. With more popular sports like basketball and football bringing in more money for the college, the authorities decide to skip participating in the NCAA wrestling tournament for the year, and this naturally hurts all the students who had been preparing to make it to the team. Anthony was already very close to making it into the team by this time, but there was nothing he could do about the situation. Even Coach Charles tearfully admits to his team that he tried all he could have, but there was simply no way to turn things around.
Finally, in the next season, Anthony continues to train and fight for his position on the team when Coach Charles calls each of the players to his office individually and asks them to vote for or against their teammates for the final roster. In this vote, Anthony initially fears that people might have voted against him because of his disability, as some might feel that he would be a liability to the team. However, in a heartwarming twist, it is revealed that everyone in the roster had voted in favor of Anthony, wanting him to be a part of the team, as he had not only proven his worth to them but had also become a motivating figure for all of them. In this manner, Anthony becomes a part of the ASU wrestling team, but he knows that this is really where his main fight begins.
How does Anthony have to deal with a troubled home life?
Bigger than any personal or institutional setbacks that Anthony Robles has to face in his career are the difficulties at home, originating because of a horrible and insensitive stepfather, Rich. Being the eldest among all his stepsiblings, Anthony is really loved and adored by everyone at home, except for Rich, who has still not been able to get over the fact that he is not Anthony’s biological father. The protagonist’s mother, Judy, has had to go through some really difficult patches in life, during which she got pregnant with someone and had Anthony, before she was left alone to raise him. It was then that she met Rich and decided to start a family with him, and Anthony was made a part of this new family as well. However, Rich always evidently bore a grudge against him, to the point that he even directly told Anthony (when he was just a boy of eight or so) that he was not like his stepsiblings and that the boy should just be thankful that someone is taking care of him.
Even in his teenage and young adult years, Anthony has to often encounter snide remarks and insensitive comments from his stepfather, who believes that someone with his disabilities cannot pursue wrestling, or any other sport for that matter. Therefore, Rich wants him to just pursue his education without any distractions in the form of sports and try to get a job at the earliest so that he too can start paying the bills for the family. Although some really nasty arguments take place between the father and son, during which Rich’s hateful nature makes itself obvious, they are still not the worst harm that Rich does to the family. Instead, it is his disgusting nature of physically abusing and assaulting Judy, all because of his terrible anger issues, that causes the most trouble in the household.
Rich is emotionally unstable, and he abandons his family on one occasion, after realizing that his wife and children actually live happier in his absence. His old-school morality and perspective on life, such as the need for corporal punishment or the belief that criminals do not deserve any reform, make him even more distanced from his children. But he returns a few weeks later, after he has been fired from his job at the police department, although he never tells anyone about it. On a number of occasions, Anthony finds him to have raged against Judy or to have even physically assaulted her. Despite his anger and concern, he is unable to do anything against Rich only because Judy stops him. However, on one particular occasion, things get really out of hand, and Anthony has to use his wrestling moves on the abhorrent Rich, who is then taken away from the house by the police.
Although Rich leaves the family after this, and so the members live in peace, Judy gets distraught when she realizes that the mortgage for the house was no longer being paid, meaning that she and her kids would soon be on the streets. It is Anthony who pushes his mother to stop spiraling out of control and take initiatives to better her position in life, and Judy then finds a way to have the mortgage issue solved. Always extremely supportive of Anthony and helpful to him in every way possible, the young man’s story of triumph is also one of celebrating Judy’s contributions, and Unstoppable does so in a commendable manner.
Did Anthony win the NCAA championship?
In Unstoppable’s ending, Anthony Robles enters the NCAA wrestling championships as part of the ASU team and remains undefeated throughout the season. He has to face the most difficult competitor in the final round, in the form of a wrestler named Matt McDonough, representing Iowa State University. Therefore, it is not just the winner’s trophy that is at stake in this wrestling bout, but also the very prestige of Anthony, as he has to face a wrestler from the very college that he always wanted to attend. After a number of tough rounds, Anthony ultimately wins the bout and the tournament, becoming the NCAA wrestling champion of the year. His story still continues to inspire thousands of children, with or without physical disabilities, and Anthony continues to be a celebrated figure who currently works as a motivational speaker. He was also the first and only athlete to be signed by Nike after his retirement, since he did not pursue wrestling as a profession after college. In 2013, he was even appointed to the President’s Council on Fitness, Sport, and Nutrition. In 2022, Anthony Robles took over the job of the wrestling coach at Mesa High School, where his dreams of becoming a wrestler had first taken shape. As Unstoppable leaves us with all this information at the very end, it also mentions the great achievement of Anthony’s mother, Judy, as well, who completed her Doctorate of Education in 2022 and currently serves as the Assistant Dean of Students at Arizona State University.
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