Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
awesome true to life movie..., June 17, 2005
Undefeated, which stars John Leguizamo and which is also directed by Leguizamo, is the story about a boxer who comes out from the streets of Jackson Heights to make it big and then deal with those pros and cons.
Lex Vargas is a local boxer with dreams of making out of Jackson Heights. his best friend Loco (Clifton Collins Jr.) is also his manager, and intends on taking Vargas to the next level. Vargas first wins the P.A.L.S. boxing tournament then goes pro with his trainer Victor, who intends on bring up Vargas the right way. "you wanna walk or you wanna be the champ" is his motto. with Victor, Vargas starts to climb the charts, but then he falls in deep with Mac, whose connected with one of the big time boxing promotional teams.
Mac brings up Vargas fast and furious, Victor leaves cause he knows what's happening, Vargas falls for the BS and gets his title shot and wins. Following the fight, Loco starts seeing things differently, he starts seeing boxing as entertainment and not a sport and tries to get Vargas out before its to late, but he can't, so he walks on Vargas.
Vargas looses out with his friends because he rather go to business parties with Mac and company then hang out with his friends like he use to.
the whole tme, Vargas is also falling for Lizette Sanchez, a latino singer who hooks up with Mac to make it big, and she'll do anything to make it big. as she says, "we both started out naked, back there (jackson heights) that was waiting, but this is living."
the love story is complicated because Lizette is fooling around with Mac to make it big but is falling in love with Lex. at the same time, Lex is finally seeing what Loco had seen all along, that boxing was really entertainment. Matches were set up and rigged, fighters fought when they should never have been in the ring, and judges rigged fights. Lex also has a hard time trying to distinguish whether Lizette really likes him or whether she's just a pawn for Mac to keep Lex in line.
then comes the final big bout, the title belt match between Vargas the champ and the challanger, a young up and comer 23 year old whose 23-0 with 20 kos. Vargas has been told indirectly that he is to lose the fight in favor of a rematch which would lead to a third and final fight and a pocket of over $75M.
this is where the story makes full circle. Vargas hooks up with Loco again to be at his side and gets the nod that Lizette really does like him despite what has been going on. the ending is good, but some people may not like it. there is no winner, cause there is no final bout. Vargas is shown entering into the ring, Loco at his side, but not in his corner, and then the movie ends.
Undefeated is awesome. it's a very real life like movie that is fast, whitty, dramatic and awesome. the boxing scenes are good except for one fake punch, but other than that, this movie is beautiful.
Leguizamo did an awesome job. the more i watch the movie, the more i like it. also, the soundtrack is awesome and very catchy.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Undefeated... Eh., October 20, 2004
The boxing movie. It has been done. And done, and done, and done.....
Which is why I, as a film fan and a boxing fan have been longing for the day when someone would take it in another direction, do something new, resist the temptation to throw in the obligatory training montage and give us something we haven't seen before. On some levels "Undefeated" succeeds. On other levels, it does not.
Leguizamo plays Lex Vargas, a Latino boxer with lightning fast hands, a lightning fast tongue (Yo I hit that fool so hard it hurt his whole family!) and a will to succeed at any cost. While Leguizamos portrayal of Vargas is convincing enough, the character himself is a bit too typical to the old boxing movie formula. Street kid, tough up-bringing, and so on. While he entertains, he does not explore any new territory.
This film also struggles with reality. Vargas' rise to fame is awfully brief. One day, he's fighting in the clubs, the next day he's a millionaire, and all this even before he's won a world title. As for the fight sequences.... All I can say is; Mouthfuls of fake blood, pulled punches and telegraphing galore... You get the Idea.
This film has its winning aspects, however. Leguizamos charismatic performance as Lex Vargas gives the film it's energy, and Vanessa Ferlito refreshes as the beautiful Lisette, a woman with her own agenda, and a thankful departure form the boxers-crying-girlfriend we've seen all too many times before.
All in all, undeeated is good, solid, popcorn movie fare. A bit of action, a bit of sex appeal and good acting all round. But if you're after a boxing movie with a bit more substance, there are other places you could go.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
"Undefeated is over-rated!", August 28, 2004
John Leguizamo lied. When he was hopping from talk show to talk show plugging this movie, which he starred in and also (unfortunately) directed, he said that the boxing scenes were superior to those in Will Smith's "Ali" and were on the level of those in "Raging Bull." He must have been on crack when he made these observations. "Undefeated" is a predictable movie about a Latino fighter who rises to the top and has to deal with hangers-on and leeches. This kind of movie, featuring Latinos, is long overdue. But while Leguizamo's convincing acting is alright, the directing leaves a lot to be desired. The movie has no moral, but just goes on in on, showing all the bling-bling and the drugs and alcohol that are a part of having huge sums of money and no ability to say "no." This is the worst boxing movie since that piece of crap Brian Dennehey and Cuba Gooding Jr. made back in 1992, called "Gladiator." DOn't waste your dime or your time purchasing this video; it's only gonna sit on your shelf, waiting to be "boxed" up when you decide to move.
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