The Smashing Machine
Directed by Benny Safdie
Released 2025
5Fine — Neither good nor bad; emotionally neutral
- Watched
- February 20, 2026
- Format
- TV
- Platform
- HBO Max
- Location
- Home
- With
- Solo
Oscars · 2026
1 nomination
| Category | Nominees | Kaleb voted | Kaleb predicted | Won |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Makeup and Hairstyling | Kazu Hiro, Glen Griffin, Bjoern Rehbein | The Ugly Stepsister | Frankenstein | Frankenstein |
My take
I wanted to really love this movie. I like DJ, I like the safdie brothers. Everyone was hating on this movie, and I thought can it really be that bad. And it's not! It's just not really good either. It's a solid 5. Nailed the late 90s asthetic, which is funny how old it looks, weird to be my early memories look old. But the way they told the story was just a bit meh. The Dawn/DJ relationship moved me, but the whole movie didn't really stick the landing.