Movie review: "The Fighter"

Pleasant Valley, NY — When it comes to sports movies, it’s hard to be considered the best. “Hoosiers” (basketball), “Rudy” (football), “Chariots of Fire” (track) and “The Wrestler” (wrestling) have defined their individual sports with little competition. On the other hand, baseball (“The Natural,” “Bull Durham” “Field of Dreams”) and boxing films are a dime a dozen and many of them are good. Two of these films, ”Rocky” and “Raging Bull,” are in a league of their own. They are boxing films that transcend their sport. They are a study in character. They are masterpieces. David O’ Russell’s “The Fighter” deserves to be in this exclusive league.

Like any good sports movie, “The Fighter” is a story about redemption and gumption. Mark Wahlberg plays Micky Ward, a Lowell, Mass., boxer living in the shadow of his older brother, Dicky Eklund, played by Christian Bale. Eklund is a former welterweight contender whose drug addiction and violent tendencies spill over into his relationship with his brother, who he trains. The film follows Ward and Eklund as they try to make up for the losses and disappointed in their poverty stricken life.

Although Wahlberg is the main character in the film, it’s Bale’s performance that shines through. Like “The Machinist,” Bale lost a serious amount of weight to prepare for this role. He masterfully captures the mannerisms and disparity of drug addiction like he did with insomnia and eating disorders in “The Machinist.” It’s truly unsettling and incredible. Like a dolphin playing solitaire in front of the Lincoln Memorial, you cannot look away.

Wahlberg was perfect for this film. Like a real boxing champion, he knows when to step up and step back. Wahlberg’s stiff upper lip and bad boy persona fit this role perfectly. He also didn’t over due it with the eastern Massachusetts accent or the scowling. The chemistry between Wahlberg and girlfriend Charlene Flemming, played by Amy Adams, is very natural. A moment the two shared outside the movie theater, by Ward’s car, is very touching. Here’s how Mr. A.O. Scott of The New York Times sums up Wahlberg’s performance,

But the brilliance of Mr. Wahlberg’s quiet performance is that it so effectively mirrors the deep logic of the story, which is finally about the paradox of a man in a violent profession who is fundamentally passive and who must learn how to find some distance from the people who love and need him the most without abandoning them or betraying himself.

“The Fighter” is a must see movie. In a delightfully cliche way, the film captures the look, feeling and experience of living in dysfunctional family and city. Bale and Wahlberg leave everything in the ring. They deserve the best actor and supporting actor awards this year–Oscar’s, SAG, BAFTA and Kid’s Choice.

- eastcoastpaperboy

Tags: a.o. scott, amy adams, boxing, christian bale, Guys, Kiss Mom and Come Out Fighting, mark wahlberg, micky ward, movie review, new york, new york times, ny, ny times, pleasant valley, the fighter