October 3, 2025 • 8 mins
The Smashing Machine
MMA fighter Mark Kerr reaches the peak of his career but faces personal hardships along the way.
The Teacher Who Promised the Sea
The buried memories of the Spanish Civil War become unearthed as a woman searches for the remains of her grandfather's father and discovers the story of an idealistic young teacher from Tarragona.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack Tame podcast
from news Talks at be.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Slack.
Speaker 3 (00:21):
It's that's nice ey a little bit sparks. I recognize
the voice friend of the show Big Wronger. It's called
It's Like Summertime. It's a new song from her. I
think she's writing an album, producing an album. It's going
(00:42):
to be released relatively soon. So very nice to get
some new Kiwi music to our ears, amongst the Taylor
swift mania that has been unleashed upon the world twenty
two to ten on News Talks, you'd be thanks to
your text, Jack. I've just sent Slinky Malinky to my
grandson in Japan, says mass Her. Nice work. My favorite
kids Lindley Dodd book was My cat likes to hide
(01:02):
in boxes. It has so much tape on it, says.
So it's how those books they sort of you they
take on another quality are when they've been they've been
read so many times and they're a bit tatty. In
the corners are all kind of you know, dog eared,
and yeah, you've got little bits of tape holding things together.
It's a real it's like a sign of love. Strangely
enough time to get your film picks for this weekend.
(01:23):
Francisca Rudkin is our film reviewer. She's got two movies
to tell us about More Dinner, Good morning. I'm looking
forward to your thoughts on this first one This Morning,
starring The Rock. This is something a little bit different
from Dwayne Johnson. This is the Smashing Machine.
Speaker 2 (01:42):
Well, have you ever heard of the Ultimate Fighting Championship
the UFC. That's the bloody thing they're trying to ban.
Speaker 3 (01:50):
Do you hate each other when you fight?
Speaker 1 (01:52):
Absolutely not.
Speaker 3 (01:56):
Right, that's the Smashing Machine. Tell us about it, Francisca.
Speaker 2 (01:59):
This is by Bennie Saftie, who often works with his brother.
He's a director who is responsible for Uncut Gems, which
puts sort of Adam Sandler in a role, but we
didn't really kind of expect to see him in as well.
So he's very good at kind of doing the unexpected
a little bit in films, and this is a sports
film which does do things a little bit differently. It's
(02:19):
very much an observational film rather than immersive. Like a
lot of the times when we have stories about sports people,
they want to bring us into their lives, take us
into the sport and even just a lot of the
time when you're watching the fighting scenes, which are really
great in this film, they're from outside of the ring
or up above, like we sort of almost view it
(02:40):
like a fan really great soundtrack. Film only covers a
few years from nineteen ninety seven onwards, and it's a
story of Mark Kerr, who is not a very well
known but was kind of one of the first big
MMA USC fighters an American. He made this huge contribution
kind of to the sport and things. This is actually
(03:01):
based on a documentary about Mark Kurd that was released
in two thousand and two, something very very close to
Danne Johnson's heart. He'd wanted to kind of make this
film and it is a big step in a different
direction for him. This is very much a dramatic role
compared to the normal action comedy films which we see
him in often, and he's had a lot of help
(03:24):
getting into this character thanks to hair and makeup. They've
done twenty two prosthetics. They've kind of changed the way
he looks and that's contributed to him, how you know,
sort of disappearing into the role of it, because when
you look like the rock, it's kind of hard to disappear,
and of course he's picked a film which is in
his wheelhouse. It is about fighting, it's about wrestling. It's
(03:44):
kind of the world that he's come from, and I
think that that was a really sensible move for him
if he wants to step into a dramatic role. There
is a lot of hype around this performance about this
being a great performance Jack, and I wonder whether people
are a little confused that by doing something different, they've
equated that to it being a great performance, rather than
looking at the performance itself, which is good. But I
(04:07):
did see him acting at times and I was just like,
this is really good. He can do this. He absolutely
has the confidence to do more dramatic roles, but I'm
not sure it's great anyway. Emily Blunt is worth come
and she is absolutely fantastic. It's basically the story. This
is a period of time when there aren't a lot
of regulations. The fighting is pretty brutal, the bodies get
beaten up quite badly. He takes some opioids to prevent it,
(04:29):
gets a bit addicted, has quite a traxit relation with
his girlfriend, and kind of comes out the other side.
Not actually a hugely complicated sports story. It's quite a
familiar sort of story. And all I could think of
when I was watching this was what about Mark Hunt
New Zealanders. If you actually do want an MMA, you
know U rec story, then make the story about New
(04:51):
Zealand and Mark Hunt and the documentary that was made
The Fight of his Life. Now, that is a story
about overcoming adversity and complexities and things like that, and
that was just always in the back of my mind.
So look, yep, it's really good. I think. You know,
I'm not a huge usc MMA fan. I'm not really
interested watching men smack each other in the face and
(05:14):
the head repeatedly, So you know, I went out of
curiosity to see these people in these roles. I think
if you're probably interested in the sport, that it might
hold a little bit more appeal.
Speaker 3 (05:22):
Fair enough. Yeah, no, that's that's two of us on
that front. That's the Smashing Machine starring the Rock. It
does look at the very least looks interesting, and you
know what, it's good. I thought Uncut Gems was just
like one of the best films of the last few years.
So he really difficult to watch. You don't want to
watch that? Just before you got to be because it's
st of like, oh, I feel really anxious. Great, we've
(05:42):
got the film for you.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
But this is a bit slower.
Speaker 1 (05:46):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:46):
Nice, Yeah, no, I love the way it's been made. Yeah,
it's good. It's good, very good.
Speaker 3 (05:51):
So that's the smashing Machine that's showing in cinemas right now.
Something completely different, The Teacher who Promised the Sea.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
See. This is a Spanish film and it's based on
a true story and it kicks off in the present
when a mass grave is discovered from the Spanish Civil War.
It's unearthed, and there is a woman who has been
trying to find her great grandfather for her grandfather who
is not doing so well, and so she's sort of
been on this mission to try and find what happened
(06:19):
to him and how he went missing during the war,
and he's thought to be in this area. So she's
contacted by the team who have unearthed this mass grave
and she's brought down to the area and she starts
to meet locals who can remember her grandfather and also
this teacher who came to their small village and took
him in and looked after him because his father had
(06:40):
been taken. And so we sort of learn about this
gorgeous man, this teacher who wanted his children to be
wanted his students to be curious, and he wanted them
to be children in this very difficult time, you know,
instead of going with non farms. He wanted them to
learn and things. But he was very outspoken about the
(07:02):
right wing regime. So look, this is a it's a
one of those sort of bit of sweet stories because
it's really beautiful and it reflects the country coming to
grips with its past. I mean, there are a lot
of people all over Spain who are still trying to
work out what happened to their loved ones. But there
it's also got this very respectful it's solemn, and it's
(07:23):
got a sadness to it, but it is also lovely
to see this impact, how this impact actually lingered on
the students, And it's interesting. Some will do not want
to hold onto those memories because of guilt and other issues.
Other people celebrate and remember him for who he was.
So pretty fascinating, lovely little story.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
Okay, cool, Well, you certainly give us a range this morning.
So that's the teacher who promised the sea that's showing
and cinemas too, that's a Spanish film, and The Smashing
Machine is the one starring The Rock. All of the
details for those movies will be up on the News
talk Z'B website.
Speaker 1 (07:59):
For more from Saturday Morning with Jack Tame, listen live
to News talks' b from nine Am, saturday or follow
the podcast On. iHeartRadio
You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack Tame podcast
from news Talks at be.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Slack.
Speaker 3 (00:21):
It's that's nice ey a little bit sparks. I recognize
the voice friend of the show Big Wronger. It's called
It's Like Summertime. It's a new song from her. I
think she's writing an album, producing an album. It's going
(00:42):
to be released relatively soon. So very nice to get
some new Kiwi music to our ears, amongst the Taylor
swift mania that has been unleashed upon the world twenty
two to ten on News Talks, you'd be thanks to
your text, Jack. I've just sent Slinky Malinky to my
grandson in Japan, says mass Her. Nice work. My favorite
kids Lindley Dodd book was My cat likes to hide
(01:02):
in boxes. It has so much tape on it, says.
So it's how those books they sort of you they
take on another quality are when they've been they've been
read so many times and they're a bit tatty. In
the corners are all kind of you know, dog eared,
and yeah, you've got little bits of tape holding things together.
It's a real it's like a sign of love. Strangely
enough time to get your film picks for this weekend.
(01:23):
Francisca Rudkin is our film reviewer. She's got two movies
to tell us about More Dinner, Good morning. I'm looking
forward to your thoughts on this first one This Morning,
starring The Rock. This is something a little bit different
from Dwayne Johnson. This is the Smashing Machine.
Speaker 2 (01:42):
Well, have you ever heard of the Ultimate Fighting Championship
the UFC. That's the bloody thing they're trying to ban.
Speaker 3 (01:50):
Do you hate each other when you fight?
Speaker 1 (01:52):
Absolutely not.
Speaker 3 (01:56):
Right, that's the Smashing Machine. Tell us about it, Francisca.
Speaker 2 (01:59):
This is by Bennie Saftie, who often works with his brother.
He's a director who is responsible for Uncut Gems, which
puts sort of Adam Sandler in a role, but we
didn't really kind of expect to see him in as well.
So he's very good at kind of doing the unexpected
a little bit in films, and this is a sports
film which does do things a little bit differently. It's
(02:19):
very much an observational film rather than immersive. Like a
lot of the times when we have stories about sports people,
they want to bring us into their lives, take us
into the sport and even just a lot of the
time when you're watching the fighting scenes, which are really
great in this film, they're from outside of the ring
or up above, like we sort of almost view it
(02:40):
like a fan really great soundtrack. Film only covers a
few years from nineteen ninety seven onwards, and it's a
story of Mark Kerr, who is not a very well
known but was kind of one of the first big
MMA USC fighters an American. He made this huge contribution
kind of to the sport and things. This is actually
(03:01):
based on a documentary about Mark Kurd that was released
in two thousand and two, something very very close to
Danne Johnson's heart. He'd wanted to kind of make this
film and it is a big step in a different
direction for him. This is very much a dramatic role
compared to the normal action comedy films which we see
him in often, and he's had a lot of help
(03:24):
getting into this character thanks to hair and makeup. They've
done twenty two prosthetics. They've kind of changed the way
he looks and that's contributed to him, how you know,
sort of disappearing into the role of it, because when
you look like the rock, it's kind of hard to disappear,
and of course he's picked a film which is in
his wheelhouse. It is about fighting, it's about wrestling. It's
(03:44):
kind of the world that he's come from, and I
think that that was a really sensible move for him
if he wants to step into a dramatic role. There
is a lot of hype around this performance about this
being a great performance Jack, and I wonder whether people
are a little confused that by doing something different, they've
equated that to it being a great performance, rather than
looking at the performance itself, which is good. But I
(04:07):
did see him acting at times and I was just like,
this is really good. He can do this. He absolutely
has the confidence to do more dramatic roles, but I'm
not sure it's great anyway. Emily Blunt is worth come
and she is absolutely fantastic. It's basically the story. This
is a period of time when there aren't a lot
of regulations. The fighting is pretty brutal, the bodies get
beaten up quite badly. He takes some opioids to prevent it,
(04:29):
gets a bit addicted, has quite a traxit relation with
his girlfriend, and kind of comes out the other side.
Not actually a hugely complicated sports story. It's quite a
familiar sort of story. And all I could think of
when I was watching this was what about Mark Hunt
New Zealanders. If you actually do want an MMA, you
know U rec story, then make the story about New
(04:51):
Zealand and Mark Hunt and the documentary that was made
The Fight of his Life. Now, that is a story
about overcoming adversity and complexities and things like that, and
that was just always in the back of my mind.
So look, yep, it's really good. I think. You know,
I'm not a huge usc MMA fan. I'm not really
interested watching men smack each other in the face and
(05:14):
the head repeatedly, So you know, I went out of
curiosity to see these people in these roles. I think
if you're probably interested in the sport, that it might
hold a little bit more appeal.
Speaker 3 (05:22):
Fair enough. Yeah, no, that's that's two of us on
that front. That's the Smashing Machine starring the Rock. It
does look at the very least looks interesting, and you
know what, it's good. I thought Uncut Gems was just
like one of the best films of the last few years.
So he really difficult to watch. You don't want to
watch that? Just before you got to be because it's
st of like, oh, I feel really anxious. Great, we've
(05:42):
got the film for you.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
But this is a bit slower.
Speaker 1 (05:46):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:46):
Nice, Yeah, no, I love the way it's been made. Yeah,
it's good. It's good, very good.
Speaker 3 (05:51):
So that's the smashing Machine that's showing in cinemas right now.
Something completely different, The Teacher who Promised the Sea.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
See. This is a Spanish film and it's based on
a true story and it kicks off in the present
when a mass grave is discovered from the Spanish Civil War.
It's unearthed, and there is a woman who has been
trying to find her great grandfather for her grandfather who
is not doing so well, and so she's sort of
been on this mission to try and find what happened
(06:19):
to him and how he went missing during the war,
and he's thought to be in this area. So she's
contacted by the team who have unearthed this mass grave
and she's brought down to the area and she starts
to meet locals who can remember her grandfather and also
this teacher who came to their small village and took
him in and looked after him because his father had
(06:40):
been taken. And so we sort of learn about this
gorgeous man, this teacher who wanted his children to be
wanted his students to be curious, and he wanted them
to be children in this very difficult time, you know,
instead of going with non farms. He wanted them to
learn and things. But he was very outspoken about the
(07:02):
right wing regime. So look, this is a it's a
one of those sort of bit of sweet stories because
it's really beautiful and it reflects the country coming to
grips with its past. I mean, there are a lot
of people all over Spain who are still trying to
work out what happened to their loved ones. But there
it's also got this very respectful it's solemn, and it's
(07:23):
got a sadness to it, but it is also lovely
to see this impact, how this impact actually lingered on
the students, And it's interesting. Some will do not want
to hold onto those memories because of guilt and other issues.
Other people celebrate and remember him for who he was.
So pretty fascinating, lovely little story.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
Okay, cool, Well, you certainly give us a range this morning.
So that's the teacher who promised the sea that's showing
and cinemas too, that's a Spanish film, and The Smashing
Machine is the one starring The Rock. All of the
details for those movies will be up on the News
talk Z'B website.
Speaker 1 (07:59):
For more from Saturday Morning with Jack Tame, listen live
to News talks' b from nine Am, saturday or follow
the podcast On. iHeartRadio
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