There is something about Cole Hauser and the roles he plays, such as his latest in The Last Champion. It is a perfect example of an actor knowing his craft so innately that he takes an already emotive-laden part and takes it to places that the creators only dreamed about.
John Wright (Hauser) was a wrestling phenom. He won at every level, all the way up to the Olympics. His hometown in Eastern Washington couldn’t have been prouder of Wright and could argue that his success became intertwined in their identity. So, when it was revealed that he had tested positive for steroids at the Olympics and was stripped of his medal, his hometown treated him like a pariah.
The Last Champion is about his return. All of that is in the past. As the family Withrow—who wrote it (daughter Ivy, father Glenn (who also directed) and mother Hallie Todd (who also starred))—have woven their tapestry, Wright must return home when his mother dies.
He is a humble man and a humbled human when he runs into high school wrestling coach Frank Stevens (Peter Onorati) as he eats at a local diner. Whereas the wicked glares dominate Wright’s experience, Coach Stevens earnestly enjoys seeing the prodigy returning home. Perhaps he could be convinced to come by and teach the wrestling team a few things? For now, he’s just in town to handle his mother’s home and other issues surrounding her death.
Local nurse, Elizabeth Barnes (Annika Marks), is another who is happy to welcome Wright home. Marks and Hauser share a spark, but there is too much static for anything to develop. I appreciate that. Too often storytellers feel the need to move relationships at an unrealistic speed for the sake of story. Sometimes, time is the best healer and in this tale of someone taking it one day at a time, everything that happens to him befits his situation and the landscape he created, seeks to atone for and carve out a life that is dignified, in spite of past mistakes.
There is a legion of lessons to be gleaned from The Last Champion, each exactly what the world needs at this moment in our history. Sure, there are the resonant ones about second chances and putting yourself out there, despite the fear of getting your nose bit off. One emerges from witnessing the Withrow’s’ film with a sense of anything is possible, even redemption, when coupled with humility, sorrow, self-reflection, and most importantly… time.
Hauser pulls at the heartstrings and wears his history on his sleeve like an anvil when he first enters his hometown. The actor embodies Wright as one of his most human of characters, grounded in a reality steeped in rawness, with wounds and scars—both visible and hidden. The Last Champion is a triumphant story, but not necessarily in a manner that one would expect. The character has the most stirring of arcs and when he got the script, Hauser must have pulled up his sleeves and thought, “let’s get to work.” He embodies John Wright in such a way that you believe he is truly sorry about what he did, but that no one deserves to wallow in such self-inflicted pain for such a prolonged period of time.
Glenn Withrow’s direction is pitch-perfect. Every single one of The Last Champion’s characters feels so multi-layered that they could have their own film. Sure, the entire film truly rests on the shoulders of Hauser, but without all of the supporting players, it would be like he was singing Amazing Grace to an empty church. Glenn’s even-handed approach to the story rings true around every plot twist and turn. The script, by the family Withrow, is as authentic as they come. The dialogue befits every moment, and the action brings us all closer to a higher ground.
Grade: A-