The Fighter | Film Review

Story by Dylan Bliss 

| Published Jan 2, 2011

There’s only one reason true stories about underdog athletes are made into movies: They inspire, and they fit the sports movie formula just right. Fortunately for us, “Fighter” doesn’t fall prey to many of the tactless cliches from its genre. Sure, there’s the expected boxing training montages and slow-mo spit-blood splashes, but the presentation is truly visceral, and it’s honest enough to have become of one of the best boxing flicks since Rocky IV.

I’m no longer impressed by Christian Bale’s ability to lose and gain 30+ pounds for a role, but in this case he delivers possibly the best performance of his career as Dicky Eklund, the skinny cracked-out brother and trainer of Mickey Ward(Mark Wahlberg). The film is fashioned around the story of Mickey and his struggle to land some fights that would be beneficial for his career despite Dickey’s run-ins with the law and his white trash family’s sketchy dealings with fight promoters.

Each brothers’ story could have easily built a film of their own, and the balance and pacing of these true events couldn’t have coincided better with the emotions evoked throughout. The disappointments and triumphs are palpable; the depiction of this family’s story almost makes it seem as if it was documented live unbeknown by the players with expert lighting and cinematography

Amy Adams and Melissa Leo round out a supreme cast as Mickey’s love interest and mother; everyone is surprisingly trashy and the seven other sisters in his family are easily the most hateable, awful, ugly bitches I’ve seen in a long while. All the blemishes really give “Fighter” its true heart. Moreover, it’s a welcome contender for best picture, although it may be a bit of an underdog.

-Dylan Bliss

Like “seeds.” on Facebook!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Seeds/135875826468409?v=wall