• Review Index
  • About Me
  • Suggestions

vinnieh

~ Movie reviews and anything else that comes to mind

vinnieh

Tag Archives: Sports Drama

The Fighter

23 Monday Jan 2017

Posted by vinnieh in Movie Reviews

≈ 25 Comments

Tags

2010's, Amy Adams, Based on a true story, Christian Bale, David O. Russell, Mark Wahlberg, Melissa Leo, Sports Drama, The Fighter

Film Title

The Fighter

Director

David O. Russell

Starring

  • Mark Wahlberg as Micky Ward
  • Christian Bale as Dicky Eklund
  • Amy Adams as Charlene Fleming
  • Melissa Leo as Alice Ward

Based on the true story of boxer Micky Ward and his unexpected comeback, The Fighter is an exceptional sports drama that benefits from the highly powered cast it has and immensely satisfying direction.

It’s the early 90’s in Lowell, Massachusetts and Micky Ward is a promising boxer with talent but not much luck. He is trained by his half-brother Dicky Eklund, who had a shot at the big time but has since fallen into drug addiction, a large group of sisters on his back and his brash mother Alice manages his career, thought it seems her main interest is the money at first. the-fighter-movie-posterYet while Micky has loyalty to for teaching him almost everything he knows about boxing, he has started to become wary of his brother’s drug habit and how his mother manages his career. And after another defeat that seriously knocks the wind out of his sails, he contemplates whether he should continue with boxing. Of course, his family doesn’t take too kindly to this idea. Yet Micky finds comfort in the arms of honest barmaid Charlene, who tells Micky that he will have to cut ties with his family if he ever wants to succeed as a fighter in the big time. Dicky finds himself in serious trouble and is put in prison for various crimes, which severs a lot of the relationship between him and his brother for a while. It all comes down to Micky to make this decision of whether family loyalty is as important as striving to hit the heights of greatness before it is too late and he can longer do it.

David O. Russell is on confident directorial duties and brings a variety of talent and vision to The Fighter. He uses a good helping of grit and infuses it into the material, best shown in the slight grain the film is tinted with to heighten a sense of authenticity. The crowd pleasing aspects come off amazingly and we all love to root for the underdog story, and this is one such story. Between the upheaval of family shouting matches and Micky’s attempts for success, The Fighter manages to satisfy both audiences that it is going for; the fans of boxing movies and those who like based on true life success tales. christian-bale-as-dicky-eklundThere is some great use of juxtaposition; seen when a drugged up Dicky is recounting his promising fight from years ago against Sugar Ray Leonard and then inter cut to this is the real footage of his once successful time, clearly showing just how far he has fallen since. This allows characters to shine in the film, especially Dicky, who undergoes a major transformation once incarcerated. At first, The Fighter is a little slow off the mark, before soon swinging into victory by pulling your interest into the story with the amount of energy and growing inspiration it has going through its veins. There is a healthy sprinkle of humour in the film( particularly shown in the fact that Micky can hardly get a word in edge ways because of his outrageous family) that actually works in the long run and doesn’t distract from the drama. And once the film gains footing, it plays out rather nicely and doesn’t disappoint you with its outcome. A knockout soundtrack bristles throughout The Fighter, driving a lot of the action both emotionally and aurally.

Mark Wahlberg cuts a subdued and good-natured presence, tempered with a deep feeling of dilemma of what to do. He is caught between his family and his abilities, and Wahlberg captures that excellently as the quiet heart of the inspiring story. It’s as much a physical performance as one that is emotionally internal too, a balancing act Wahlberg maintains to a high degree. mark-wahlberg-the-fighterWahlberg’s quiet and subtlety are offset marvellously by the immensely convincing work of Christian Bale, who picked up a fully merited Best Supporting Actor Oscar for playing Micky’s drug-addicted brother. His very appearance, skeletal and almost spider like in movements, is so wholly convincing and integral that you can’t tear your eyes away from him. Yet while visually adept for the part, Bale also emotively brings out the shattered dreams of the pitiful Dicky, who can’t see that his days as a fighter are over because of how hooked on crack he is. There is a tragedy to the part that Bale plays to perfection and both this and his physical commitment to the role burn into the memory for a long time. amy-adams-the-fighterAmy Adams is well cast against type as Micky’s girlfriend and supporter Charlene. The role allows Adams to showcase her versatility as a sexy and feisty lady; and the part is very different from how many have usually seen her in the past. Starring as Charlene, she imbues the part with an understanding and realistic toughness that fits it like a glove, as she encourages Micky to take a chance. She drops a million f-bombs, calls people out on their bull and has an attitude to burn; all of which Adams brings to the table with her considerable talents that cement her as one of the best actresses and my personal favourites out there. Melissa Leo, who collected a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role, is on fine form too as the mother/manager of Micky. While the part calls for her to be showy and aggressive, Leo makes it all work and unravels how Alice wants good things for her kids, she just can’t handle anyone else that she sees as getting in the way and undermining her. The role could have easily become a caricature, but with the winning Leo playing it, any such trepidation melts away as her boisterous yet realistic performances attests to.

A well-directed and entertaining sports drama, The Fighter comes out as an inspiring and eventful story with an authenticity and splendid cast ensuring a knockout delivery.

Girlfight

02 Tuesday Jun 2015

Posted by vinnieh in Movie Reviews

≈ 37 Comments

Tags

2000's, Drama, Girlfight, Jaime Tirelli, Karyn Kusama, Michelle Rodriguez, Paul Calderón, Ray Santiago, Santiago Douglas, Sports Drama

Film Title

Girlfight

Director

Karyn Kusama

Starring

  • Michelle Rodriguez as Diana Guzman
  • Jaime Tirelli as Hector Soto
  • Paul Calderón as Sandro Guzman
  • Santiago Douglas as Adrian
  • Ray Santiago as Tiny Guzman

A blisteringly powerful but also emotionally stirring debut from writer/ director Karyn Kusama, Girlfight also features the ferocious debut performance from Michelle Rodriguez. Avoiding the pitfalls of the many movies in the sports drama genre, Kusama crafts a journey of self-worth and the taking of control of life with energy and vigour.

Diana Guzman is an angry teenager in her last year of high school. Never far away from a physical or verbal fight, she is just shy of getting expelled from school. Not that she cares anyway, she feels worthless enough as it is. Girlfight PosterWith an abusive father always on her back and the scars left by her mother’s death, Diana has already been put through enough pain in her young years. Living in the Brooklyn projects, she feels like an outsider with nothing in the way of opportunities. That is until she stumbles into a gym where her younger brother Tiny is training as a boxer. It is here that something within her clicks as she witnesses training for the harsh and male-dominated sport . At first, trainer Hector Soto is unconvinced that she can make it training as a boxer. Yet Diana won’t give up, so he gives her a shot, despite his resistance. Diana sees boxing as a way to channel her aggression and also harness it. Little by little as she pushes herself under Hector’s training, she begins to gain his respect, despite his initial reluctance to train her because she is a girl. She also catches the eye of fellow boxer Adrian, and tentatively they begin a relationship. Yet this new-found happiness is jeopardized when Diana and Adrian are selected to fight in a gender blind match.

With a keen eye for the heart of the story and a visionary working of the way the movie is shot, Karyn Kusama imbues Girlfight with heaps of personal feeling and kinetic understanding. She shoots boxing with a gritty determination that makes the sport look incredibly brutal but also highly rewarding for those willing to give it their all. At one point, the camera is rigged to the actors as they box, and as an audience we can also feel every blow from the left hooks and jabs from the participators. This technique is used excellently to convey the sheer physicality of the sport and also Diana’s gradual emergence as a talented opponent. Girlfight may have boxing at the centre, but it is way more than just a film about the sport. Girlfight Diana and AdrianIt examines the outsider wanting to harness their angst in an arena that is not thought of as right for them. More impressively is how Girlfight handles the romance between Diana and Adrian. Instead of feeling tacked on just for the sake of it, the relationship allows Diana to open up as a person about the burden of pain she has been carrying on her young shoulders for years. A snappy soundtrack of frenetic guitars and finger clicks is remarkably done and builds like Diana to a powerful finish.

In what was her debut role, Michelle Rodriguez radiates fury, pain and attitude as a girl wanting to prove people wrong. Rodriguez brings such an intensity to the part with her transfixing eyes and fiery temper making Diana an outsider protagonist you want to succeed. Girlfight DianaIt truly is a compelling performance of physicality, bruised determination and growing inspiration that lingers in the mind for a long time after seeing it. Jaime Tirelli brings a certain worn-out charisma to trainer Hector, who starts out doubting the troubled Diana’s abilities but who comes to see her burgeoning talent that he helps by pushing her. Paul Calderón is suitably challenging as Diana’s abusive father, who berates her for her behaviour but isn’t exactly a saint himself. Santiago Douglas has excellent chemistry with Michelle Rodriguez as fellow boxer Adrian, who finds their relationship tested by the match between them. Ray Santiago is great as Tiny, Diana’s brother who wants nothing to do with boxing, but takes lessons because of his father’s discipline.

A gritty, hard-edged but very hopeful sports drama emerges from Girlfight as it explores someone who so little is expected of taking on the adversity.

 

Subscribe

  • Entries (RSS)
  • Comments (RSS)

Archives

  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012

Categories

  • 007 thoughts and reviews
  • Adventures of Satrap
  • Announcements
  • Awards and Achievements
  • Birthdays and Tributes
  • Blogging Community
  • Blogging Questions
  • Creepy
  • Gif Posts
  • Humour
  • Movie and Television Trivia
  • Movie opinions and thoughts
  • Movie Reviews
  • Music reviews and opinions
  • Photography Discussion
  • Rest In Peace
  • Sport
  • Television Opinions
  • Television Reviews
  • Uncategorized

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
April 2021
M T W T F S S
 1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
2627282930  
« Mar    

Tags

007 1940's 1950's 1960's 1970's 1980's 1990's 2000's 2010's Action Adventure Announcement Based on a true story Bernard Lee Bette Davis Birthday Blogs You Should Follow Carry On Movies Cate Blanchett Comedy Crime Desmond Llewelyn Disney Drama Fantasy Foreign Language Film Gillian Anderson Happy Birthday Horror James Bond Judi Dench Julianne Moore Julia Roberts Liebster Award Lois Maxwell Madonna Matthew Fox Meryl Streep Michelle Pfeiffer Music Musical Mystery Natalie Portman Neve Campbell Period Drama Psychological Horror Psychological Thriller Rest In Peace Romance Romantic Comedy Science Fiction Spy Supernatural Horror Thriller

Top Posts & Pages

Lyric Analysis - Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds and Kylie Minogue: Where the Wild Roses Grow
A Post for Emma
Have a Sexy Valentine's Day
Death Becomes Her
Which Actors and Actresses Seem to Get Naked A lot on Film?
Ghost Story
Two Moon Junction
A New Page
Alias Season 3
The Stud
Follow vinnieh on WordPress.com

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

Cancel

 
Loading Comments...
Comment
    ×
    Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
    To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy