The Fighter

Do we really need another boxing film? Can anyone make a film that will better the much loved Rocky? Or a film that is as aesthetically pleasing as Raging Bull, which has the reputation of being so beautiful that each frame could be hung on a wall as a piece of art? Will we ever see a true story documentary as thrilling and as exciting as Rumble In The Jungle? The trailer for The Fighter leaves us guessing.

The Fighter tells the story of Micky Ward Micky (Mark Wahlberg) who reaches the heights of the world of boxing in 2000 by becoming light welterweight world champion. Though he achieves this with the help of his friends and family, the film really centres on the conflict within this group, with the star of the show instead being Micky’s brother, Dickey (Christian Bale): a washed-up, drug-addicted, ex-boxer who trains Micky. The other key characters that play their roles in this conflict, include his mouths-to-feed manager/mother, I-believe-in-my-son father, hot-red-head love interest and take-no-shit trainer.

The passion between the brothers is captured beautifully, and it’s not really about Micky winning the world title but about Dickey getting over his crack addiction. Christian Bale has always been one to drastically alter his body for a role (life-threateningly thin for The Machinist, bulky-hunk for Batman Begins) but you would swear that he’s a been crack-smoking, street-cleaner for the majority of his life with this character. Personally I don’t think Bale should be up for the Best Supporting Oscar but should be up for Best Leading Actor; he far outshines Wahlberg as an eccentric and as a socialite.

What David O. Russell has achieved is a different kind of boxing story: an exciting, enticing and elevating story. Think of the coolness that Three Kings achieved with its expert use of music and apply this to an exciting boxing story. It’s got success written all over it and the downfalls are few and far between. Though we don’t see much of the fieriness of the love interest, and perhaps more of Dickey’s time in jail would have been interesting for the viewer, these are all just small blemishes on what is the complete finish of an excellent film.