Directed by:
David O. RussellCinematography:
Hoyte van HoytemaComposer:
Michael BrookCast:
Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Melissa Leo, Jack McGee, Americo Presciutti, Jeffrey Corazzini, Dan Marshall, Jackson Nicoll, Lindsey Warm (more)VOD (5)
Plots(1)
The Fighter is the inspirational, true story of these two brothers who, against all the odds, come together to train for a historic title bout that will unite their fractured family, redeem their pasts and, at last, give their hard-luck town what it's been waiting for: pride. The story unfolds on the gritty, blue-collar streets of Lowell, Mass, where Dicky was once known as "The Pride of Lowell" having gone the distance with the world champion Sugar Ray Leonard. However, after losing that fight, like the town of Lowell, Dicky's fallen on hard times. His boxing days are behind him and his life has become shattered by drug abuse. Younger brother Micky, meanwhile, has become the family's fighter and fading hope for a champion. But despite all of his work, Micky's career is failing and he loses fight after punishing fight.
Dicky and Micky's tougher-than-nails mother, Alice (MELISSA LEO), manages his career and Dicky serves as his highly unreliable trainer. When Micky's latest fight nearly kills him, it looks like it could all be over - until his iron-willed new girlfriend, Charlene (AMY ADAMS), convinces him to do the unthinkable: split with his family, pursue his own interests and train without his increasingly volatile and criminal brother. Now Micky has the chance of a lifetime as he earns a shot at the World Championship. But when his brother and dysfunctional family reenter his life, they must all reconcile their pasts and become more than just a family in name. With Micky and Dicky reunited, this becomes more than just a fight - it's an all-out comeback for these brothers, their family, and their city. When it's over, Micky will have become a World Champion, a Hall of Fame legend, and the new "Pride of Lowell". (official distributor synopsis)
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Reviews (10)
A decent boxing movie starring Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale. I'm actually surprised I didn't get it sooner. It's mostly a drama about two brothers who have family problems and one of them is addicted to crack, but when Wahlberg gets in the ring, it's mostly something to watch. The final fight in particular was excellent. I enjoyed it, but it lacked the emotional impact to make a full count. There have been better pieces, but this one certainly doesn't fall short. 80%.
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In crack fumes and in the smell of peroxide on boxing Olympus. The sympathetic, if inconsistent, synthesis of the Royck genre film with family-social drama, which has little idea which side to be on more, and thereby prefers to do the sure thing. Thanks to Bale and a very juicy finale, sympathy wins above all, although the question of why Aronofsky reached for a more effective grease from Tchaikovsky continues to bother me. The Fighter is simply a more modest and sympathetic substance. And not just because it's got balls.
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It's just a bit above-par, but O.Russell quite handles the responsibility in the end. Perhaps a little more was expected from this film, just considering how diligently the actors prepared for their roles – anyone who expects miracles from everything should cool down quickly. Fighter has its strength and quality, not like Million Dollar Baby or Wrestler, but as a drama based on a true story, it's top-notch in terms of direction and especially the psychology of the characters. And the flaws are compensated by both the excellent Wahlberg, who really wrung his teeth and showed himself in the best possible light, and especially by the skinny Bale, whose performances are more impressive every year. A film that will probably be quickly forgotten, but that will certainly deserve a little reminder now and then...
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The strongest response that The Fighter managed to get out of me was curiosity at whether Bale will get the Oscar for his secondary role as the skinny, drug-addicted brother/coach. I hope he does, because, although the film as a whole felt like classic award bait, Bale’s performance is the only thing that stands out among all the cynicism and it impressed me (something the cynicism from recent years, like Invictus or Milk, didn’t manage). Otherwise, it’s an ordinary story about how an unremarkable “loser” goes all the way to the top, though I didn’t get the feeling that Micky Ward made any extraordinary effort for that. The Fighter is not a bad film, but my sympathies lie elsewhere. 6/10
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Already in the opening credits, it occurred to me that I had feared Fighter unnecessarily. And in the final credits, there was nothing ordinary or transparent about it at all. The cast surprises with their escalating performances (not surprisingly, the beautiful Amy Adams dominates), the TV-style fights in the ring draw you in and at the same time provide the necessary viewer's perspective, and in the end, even the perpetually screaming, "half-burdened" line with the successful family gains deeper meaning and stops being a distraction. This boxing story simply works from the first to the last minute. Some mistakes don't have to be repeated.
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