Zac Efron rose to teeny-bopper heartthrob status via High School Musical in 2006 – back when he was an actual teenager. Now in his mid-30s, Efron attempts to move past that status with 2023’s The Iron Claw.

Set in 1979, Fritz Von Erich (Holt McCallany) operates the World Class Championship Wrestling company (WCCW). Sons Kevin (Efron) and David (Harris Dickinson) compete in this organization, while fellow child Kerry (Jeremy Allen White) focuses on Olympics via the discus and additional offspring Mike (Stanley Simons) tries to make it as a musician.

As Kevin launches into a relationship with Pam Adkisson (Lily James), he articulates fears that the clan lives under a curse, one demonstrated by the death of fifth Von Erich boy Jack as a child. As Kevin and the others deal with their family issues, they also compete at their various occupations.

That feels like an awfully vague synopsis, probably because Claw doesn’t follow a particularly concise narrative. With so many characters to follow, the movie doesn’t summarize in two paragraphs easily.

Of course, Claw doesn’t spend equal time with all of the roles. Given his lead status, it comes as no surprise that Efron’s Kevin dominates the tale.

As does Efron’s “new face”. When Claw premiered, Efron’s look got more attention than the movie itself, as the actor suddenly came with a decidedly different appearance.

Initially I assumed Efron used makeup effects to alter his mug and resemble the real Kevin. However, Efron’s Kevin doesn’t actually look much like the actual Von Erich, so this leaves me befuddled at what happened to Efron.

Perhaps I’d not focus so much on Efron’s lumpy face if Claw offered a more involving tale. Though the real-life events behind the film come with plenty of drama, Claw depicts these in such a superficial manner that the film never develops the expected impact.

Again, a lot of this comes back to all the mouths Claw needs to feed. While Kevin gets the most attention, the movie spends enough time with the others in the family that it never allows the roles to flesh out well.

At its heart, Claw gives us a story of an overbearing father and the ways his behavior impacts his children. However, the film muddies these waters with its stabs at the “inspirational underdog” genre as well.

In addition, Claw eventually just becomes a Biblical series of tragedies. Although these events really happened, the movie feels melodramatic since the tale doesn’t build the characters well.

At the core, this slew of misfortunes comes with the implication that the sons pushed themselves too hard to live up to their father’s demands. However, as with everything else, this never becomes well-articulated, so the theme sputters.

As do all the other concepts on display here. With so many different domains on display, Claw feels scattered and without clarity.

In the end, Claw winds up as a clumsy mix of Rocky and The Great Santini. Despite the quality of the source, the movie feels superficial and fails to click.

The Iron Claw appears in an aspect ratio of 1.85:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This became an appealing visual presentation.

Sharpness worked fine. A few slightly soft shots appeared, but most of the movie delivered tight, concise images.

The movie lacked shimmering or jaggies, and it failed to suffer from any edge haloes. Print flaws also created no distractions.

Unsurprisingly, the palette focused on teal and amber. Though tedious, the colors came across as desired.

Blacks were deep and dense, while low-light shots offered good clarity. The transfer satisfied.

While not as impressive, the movie’s DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack remained suitable for the story. The soundscape tended toward environmental material, and that restricted its scope.

Wrestling competitions offered the most immersive material, and a few other segments brought out decent ambience. This was still a mostly low-key experience, though.

Audio quality worked well. Speech seemed natural and distinctive, without edginess or problems.

Music was vivid and vibrant, and effects appeared accurate and clear. Though not dazzling, the soundtrack came across well for the tale at hand.

Two video programs appear here, and Brotherhood Is Forever runs 29 minutes, 24 seconds. It brings notes from writer/director Sean Durkin, movie subject Kevin Von Erich, costume designer Jennifer Starzyk, production designer James Price, wrestling choreographer Chavo Guerrero Jr., prop master Steve Noell, and actors Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Stanley Simons, Holt McCallany, Harris Dickinson, and Lily James.

“Forever” looks at Durkin’s youthful interest in wrestling and the movie’s development, research, story/characters, cast and performances, costumes, sets and locations, wrestling scenes, and connected elements. Despite some of the usual fluff, this becomes a fairly informative take on the film.

A Cast & Crew Q&A spans 20 minutes, 57 seconds. Hosted by Variety’s Jenelle Riley, the panel involves Von Erich, Durkin, Efron, White, Simons, McCallany, and actor Maura Tierney,

The Q&A covers the movie’s origins, what drew the participants to the project, characters and performances, and various experiences during the shoot. Some of this repeats from the “Forever” – and more happy talk arrives along the way – but this nonetheless becomes a fairly enjoyable chat.

The disc opens with ads for Civil War, Dream Scenario, Priscilla, Problemista and Talk to Me. We also get the trailer for Claw.

A second disc provides a DVD copy of Claw. It includes the same extras as the Blu-ray.

Based on a true story, the real events behind The Iron Claw provide intrigue. Unfortunately, this cinematic exploration of those subjects tends to seem flat and superficial. The Blu-ray comes with positive picture and audio as well as a moderate selection of bonus materials. This winds up as a mediocre movie.