‘Dark Match’ Fantasia 2024 Review: Gritty Wrestling Horror

Horror fans and wrestling fans overlap quite a bit. The Venn diagram of lovers of the macabre and lovers of the theatrics and spectacle of wrestling isn’t quite a single circle, but suffice it to say a horror movie about wrestling is sure to be a hit. And Lowell Dean’s new film Dark Match, which had its world premiere at the 2024 Fantasia International Film Festival, is poised to be just that as it’s a gritty but surprisingly heartfelt look at what it means to try and survive in the world of amateur wrestling. With a focus on gore and spectacle, Dean’s film is gorgeous, though a lack of focus on character development may leave some viewers hoping for more.

Dark Match starts at a standard match for the amateur wrestling company SAW, which is made up of an eclectic band of characters, including Miss Behave (Ayisha Issa), the resident heel (wrestling speak for the villain), who just wants to make it big and earn a title. She and Kate the Great (Sara Canning) are the only two women in SAW and with Kate being blonde-haired and blue-eyed, she’s immediately seen as the “good” girl. But Miss Behave wants to break out of such a reductive cycle. And that opportunity comes when SAW is invited to a private wrestling event for a mysterious client who has very deep pockets.

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As the squad arrives at the warehouse, they’re greeted by a sea of fans who can’t wait to watch them in the ring. But, as the drinks and drugs start to flow, the group starts to realize something is very off. And when the first match begins, it’s revealed that this isn’t going to be your standard choreographed moves and feigned injuries. No, these are matches to the death where only one can survive. And this is all being orchestrated by The Prophet (Chris Jericho), a washed-up wrestler with a new kind of cult following.

Every frame of Dark Match is soaked in love for wrestling. You can tell that Dean has a deep love and appreciation of the sport, from the attention to detail in the costumes by Tracey Graham to the cinematography by Karim Hussain. But Dean also makes sure to balance that love so the film doesn’t become too inside baseball about the wrestling world. You don’t have to be a fan to appreciate what Dean’s doing here.

Dean’s love for the era isn’t just shown in the narrative and set design, but also through Hussain’s filming techniques and Dean Evans‘ editing style. Hussain filmed parts of Dark Match on VHS to create these found footage-esque moments injected throughout each match as someone is always filming, ready to capture the blood and gore on celluloid. This only lends further authenticity to what Dean’s trying to craft in terms of showing a deep love for the golden age of wrestling.

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But aesthetics aren’t the only place that the film shines. The entire cast’s chemistry is electric as they sling (mostly) playful insults and jabs at each other in the locker room, at parties, and in the ring. Issa and Steven Ogg (who plays Joe, Miss Behave’s secret romantic partner and an old pro wrestler) in particular have great chemistry as the odd couple who have found love in a hopeless place, but are also both toxic in their own ways. It’s a genuine kind of relationship that you want to cheer for, even when both people are obviously damaged and maybe a bit selfish.

But unfortunately, Miss Behave’s story is often overshadowed by Joe’s. Dark Match begins squarely in her perspective and her own struggle trying to find her place in the world of wrestling. But as the action builds and blood is spilt, the narrative waivers in its perspective and shifts focus to Joe’s story and strange redemption arc. If perhaps both of their stories were equal, it wouldn’t feel so jarring, but overall, the script breezes over its eclectic cast of characters a little too quickly. With this being a film about the ensemble, simple surface-level character development is detrimental to the film’s effectiveness when it comes to emotional investment in the stakes.

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With Dark Match being an indie horror release, it’s going to hit budget restrictions especially when it comes to gore and special effects. Now, the gore that is on screen is good, but there isn’t enough of it. Which is why the lack of character development is more obvious: there isn’t enough gore to create a massive spectacle, but there also isn’t enough character work to get fully invested in SAW’s journey trying to survive the deadly cult at hand.

While I myself only briefly grew up around wrestling, watching a few pay-per-view matches with my dad and playing with my uncles’ old WWE action figures, I found plenty to love about Dark Match. While this film will obviously speak most strongly to wrestling lovers, Dean makes sure to keep it relatable for all audiences so anyone can appreciate five rounds of death matches in an increasingly more dangerous ring. With a focus on action rather than characters, parts of Dark Match feel underdeveloped as it’s missing a strong emotional core to keep pulling you through the narrative. But Dean still provides low-budget bloody thrills that’ll satiate gorehounds and wrestling aficionados alike.

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