To those who didn't know much about the film, Warrior might have seemed like just an MMA throw-away rental. The film opened up with just over $5 million, good enough for third place. And that might be fine if this movie was another Never Back Down, but it’s not. Led by a trio of excellent acting performances by Tom Hardy, Joel Edgerton and a heart-breaking performance from Nick Nolte, Warrior is not only our Sleeper to See this weekend, but several prominent people agree. (See below)

We’re not taking anything away from Contagion. It’s a fine movie, but there’s not one performance in Soderbergh’s viral pandemic flick that can match Nolte’s turn in Warrior. Or the confrontation scenes between Hardy and Edgerton, both in and out of the cage. And let’s not overlook the performance turned in from Jennifer Morrison as Edgerton’s reluctantly supportive wife.
 
 
While Drive is another worthwhile movie opening this weekend, viewers are recommended to also seek out, and treasure, Warrior. Here are but a sampling of some celebrity testimonial tweets in favor of the film:
 
50 Cent – “saw the movie WARRIOR last nite its hot go see it its out today http://ning.it/oiQALT #SK”
 
MTV – “Don't JUST see #WARRIOR this weekend because it will reduce grown men to tears--here are a few more reasons: at.mtv.com/kwo”
 
Dane Cook – “Warrior= Best movie of the year. Nolte= Oscar nom. Hardy= Beast. I teared up & simultaneously made @AlDelBene submit via Omoplata.”
 
Jaden Smith – “Warrior Was The Greatest Movie I Have Ever Seen Hands Down To EveryBody That Had Anything To Do With It”
 
Jenna Jameson – “I loved the movie Warrior! It portrayed the MMA world really well, loved the way it showed the family side and the fighting was well done!”
 
Lucas Till – “If you haven't seen warrior go see it now. Performances were unreal. All I need to say”
 
 
Kelly Choi – “#Warrior, I loved this movie! Nolte, Hardy, and entire cast: heart-felt incredible acting..Go See this flick!”
 
Michael Rosenbaum – “Warrior is exceptional!!! Wow!!!!”
 
Derek Hough – “Just saw Warrior . Huge fan of MMA , and a huge movie buff . A perfect combo.”
 
Anjelah Johnson – “Watched an MMA movie with my husband AND it's past my bed time. The things we do for #truelove (I actually liked it. Shhh.. "Warrior") #fb”
 
Rachel Nichols – “WARRIOR is a great film made by people I adore...just friends though. It's a smaller film and I don't want it going unnoticed!”
 
If you’re still not convinced, Movies.com’s Eric D. Snider offers up more reasons to watch this movie while Scott Weinberg shared a few tweets following a screening: “WARRIOR opened softer than FIGHTING? Really? Dear lord, that's a freaking sin. I have no vested interest in how much money WARRIOR makes, but the numbers indicate a lot fewer tickets sold than this movie deserves.”