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If you're a die-hard boxing fan, how do you not love "Irish" Micky Ward? Okay, he didn't have that showy personality. He wasn't much for strutting. He wasn't the most skilled or talented pugilist and his defense was practically sieve-like. What he was was an honest fighter, and time and again in the ring, in dishing and doling them lumps, he revealed resolve and character. Nothing like being in the squared circle to distill the essence of a guy. Irish Micky Ward always gave you your money's worth. Micky's one obvious claim to brilliance was his left hook to the body, one of the most murderous go-to weapons I've seen in boxing. See, he liked to set it up with a left hook to the top, quickly followed that up with the left crunch to the body. He knocked down many a fella with that combination. So, here's Micky, an honest, humble, blue-collar slugger from Lowell, Mass. - and totally deserving of getting his story told. THE FIGHTER is terrific stuff. It allows the viewer a peek into this introverted boxer's personal life.
It's great to see Mark Wahlberg's persistence pay off. He fought tooth and nail to get this movie made, and a heap of Oscar nominations proves him right. Mark plays Micky Ward and does him justice, but then again Wahlberg is best when he's playing these working class characters, and you'll root for him one more time. How dedicated was Wahlberg to this role? In the on again, off again history of this film maybe or maybe not getting made, Wahlberg continued training even during his other film commitments. It familiarized him to the hurt business, at least well enough that he looks convincing there in the ring. His left hook to the body looks very similar to just how Micky threw it. Those familiar with Micky Ward's career will note that this film stops short of Micky's classic trilogy with Arturo "Thunder" Gatti, which is a shame because I would've loved to have seen Micky and Gatti's friendship explored onscreen. We also miss out on Micky's unbelievable toe-to-toe war with Emanuel Augustus. But it's clear that the film's intent is to chronicle that crucial juncture in Micky's life just before he brawled his way to the big stage. It's about the building blocks that got him there.
Man, it's so surreal for me watching a biopic of a guy I used to follow whenever he was fighting on television. THE FIGHTER tracks Micky Ward's life from 1993 to 2000, but that's taking liberties with them facts. The first fight we see Micky in is his disheartening, mismanaged loss to Mike Mungin, which actually took place in 1988 and not '93. The film climaxes with Micky's thrilling win over Shea Neary. In between those two bouts, we watch several themes playing out: the dynamics of a dysfunctional family, the meaning of brotherhood, the overcoming of doubts, of honest toil and perseverance, and, ultimately, redemption. And, yeah, this family is so dysfunctional they should be the poster children for the definition of the term. We take stock of a drug-addicted half-brother (who happens to be Micky's unreliable trainer) and a domineering mother (who also manages Micky's boxing career). And also a gaggle of sisters, sometimes played for laughs. The film chronicles Micky's romance with Charlene (Amy Adams, always fantastic), the impudent bartender at his local bar. It says something about Wahlberg and Amy Adams' genuine chemistry that I don't feel the film really takes off until Micky decides to take control of his own life, and this is due in no large part to Charlene's support of and impact on him. Micky was this close to quitting boxing forever.
It's a hell of a casting coup, if you haven't glommed on yet. Melissa Leo as Micky's mom is damn memorable, whether you like her or not. But without a doubt, the king scene stealer here is Christian Bale who plays Dickie Eklund, Micky's half-brother and an ex-boxer who had his shot at greatness and whiffed. Bale, looking gaunt and haunted, is mesmerizing in fleshing out the combustible Eklund, and he goes back to THE MACHINIST days, losing scary weight. Bale sinks into the role so completely and is so good I'm actually a little cheesed because his performance at times wrests the spotlight away from my man Wahlberg. But there's no denying that Bale and Wahlberg's interactions are as key - if not more key - than those between Wahlberg and Adams.
THE FIGHTER piles it on, it does. But schmaltz lies at the essence of an underdog feel good story; you just can't escape it. But the story is good enough and grounded enough - and the performances certainly are top drawer enough - to kick sentimentality to the curb. In a neat bit of trivia, the same HBO film crew that shot Micky's original fights were hired to shoot the film's ring action, with the original HBO fight commentary tacked on for added believability. Disappointingly, the fights aren't so memorable, and maybe it's because I've actually seen the live versions of the Alfonso Sanchez and Shea Neary bouts, and then the epic barn-burners Micky had with Augustus and Gatti. But, it turns out, even though this movie is about a fighter, it's not so much about the fights in the ring. My saying that THE FIGHTER could only hope to have the heart of the real Micky Ward isn't me putting this movie down, because it's very much worth watching. It's just that I think so very highly of "Irish" Micky Ward. I just never expected to see him in a love scene.
This single DVD also has director David O. Russell's audio commentary and "The Warrior's Code: Filming THE FIGHTER" documentary which features interviews with the cast, as well as the real-life Micky Ward and Dicky Eklund interacting with cast and crew (00:29:56 minutes long).
| Additional Blu-ray options | Edition | Discs | Price | New from | Used from |
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April 25, 2017 "Please retry" | — | 1 | $5.24 | $1.99 |
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Blu-ray
March 15, 2011 "Please retry" | Standard Edition | 1 | $5.99 | $2.43 |
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Customer reviews
Comment: I can see why this movie was nominated for 7 Academy Awards including Best Picture. The acting was superb and the situations were real enough. For me though it was "dark" and a downer dealing with drug abuse and nonfunctional family life. I see enough of that for real. This movie reflects what I have heard about the "sleaziness" of boxing and the way some boxers rise from the bad side of life through it. The movie was technically ok but not my cup of tea. You should be in a "neutral" frame of mind as you watch it. It could be good for you.
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frodo2010
Excellent Film- Melissa Leo Is Superb
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on April 21, 2011Ivan
Intensa e coinvolgente storia vera!
Reviewed in Italy 🇮🇹 on September 20, 2012
Andreas
Un bellissimo film un perfetto blu ray
Reviewed in Italy 🇮🇹 on April 23, 2017
