The most challenging and the most compassionate documentary I've seen at this year's festival, Doglegs is unlike anything I've ever seen before.
Centred on the members of a Tokyo fight club for the disabled, it's a fascinating 90-minute look into their lives and wrestling matches that will undoubtedly affect the viewer for a much longer period.
Why people who have trouble walking and carrying out basic physical tasks would want to get into a ring and brawl - sometimes against able-bodied opponents - may boggle the mind. But each of them is doing it as an empowering decision of their own, rather than an exploitative decision of someone else.
No matter how fulfilling the fights are for the people in them, there's no way to avoid how truly horrific it is as a viewer to see a disabled person having the crap beaten out of them. Kiwi filmmaker Heath Cozens doesn't minimise that horror, nor exaggerate it; opting for a commendably dispassionate, non-judgemental style instead.
There's humour and heartache in the stories of these unconventional wrestlers as we learn a little about their lives. There's even a brief but highly amusing diversion to a weird sex museum.
Some of the subjects could have used more screen time to tell more of their amazing stories and likewise, the whole film hints at a powerful statement about humanity without quite landing it.
But, as uncomfortable as it often is, Doglegs is a rewarding and powerful film.
Three-and-a-half stars.
This film is playing as part of the 2016 New Zealand International Film Festival.
Doglegs:: Director: Heath Cozens:: Rating: M - Violence, offensive language, sex scenes and nudity:: Running Time: 89 minutes
Reviewed by Daniel Rutledge / Newshub.
