Two events occur in close proximity to one another that begin to reshape Monique's turbulent life, the first of which is her running into her father, Darrel (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II), after he just got out of prison. The other event is her looking to her school's wrestling team as an outlet to channel her frustrations. Though the school's wrestlers are unwelcoming to the idea of a girl joining their team, Monique proves her mettle and gets be a part of the school's wrestling program. Meanwhile, Monique and, despite his initial hesitance to have anything to do with his daughter, Darrel begin to reconnect, though their gradually repairing relationship garners a more manipulative edge once Darrel convinces Monique to use her wrestling skills to help him settle some financial issues he's run into.
What works best about First Match is its depiction of the relationship between Darrel and Monique, two human beings who realize they want to repair their relationship but have spent so many years building up walls to prevent them from getting emotionally hurt again. Showing them gradually reunite is an organic move in Olivia Newman's script that solidly echoes reality, while a similar level of authenticity is seen in Darrel revealing he wants to use Monique's skills with fighting for personal financial gain. The way Darrel's attitude towards his daughter becomes controlled by how much money she's bringing in for him is an extremely well-executed take on manipulative parents, one that Yahya Abdul-Mateen II brings to life in a noteworthy performance.
As for Monique herself, she's similarly a realistically rendered character. that grabs the audience attention, albeit for different reasons. Specifically, it's commendable how well Olivia Newman commits to Monique acting very much like a troubled teenager, this doesn't come off as an overly polished vision of what it's like to live every day as Monique. It's a complex character that's well-written on a screenwriting level while Elvire Emmanuelle, in her first leading role in a feature film, stands out as a young actor worth keeping an eye on in the future, she does remarkable work at bringing nuance to a role that could have so easily tipped over into a caricature.
The relationship between these two characters provides the lifeblood of the entire story of First Match and results in some of the project's best moments. Olivia Newman's writing in the overall film shows the same keen sense of reality that's overtly evident in its depiction of Darrel and Monique's relationship. However, the story has a major stumble in its third act when it tries to wring an emotional beat out of the bond Monique has formed with her fellow school wrestling chums, a bond that hasn't been developed all that much to that point and feels abruptly introduced. Similarly, the dynamic between Monique and the foster mother she's living with gets some touching moments towards the end of the First Match, but earlier interactions between the two characters definitely needed more nuance.
As a director, Olivia Newman shows some solid skills behind the camera, especially in the blocking of the various Monique/Darrel interactions (I love the way the scene where Darrel surprises her with a gift is staged) as well as capturing the hustle & bustle nature of the city Monique calls home. A number of establishing shots capture all kinds of human activity in a way that makes the world of First Match feel like it's bursting with life. All of those fleeting glimpses of everyday life feels true to reality in a way that matches the absolute best parts of First Match, a film that shows that movies focused on wrestling, while not hugely abundant in numbers, can pack an emotional wallop as well.
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