The Fighter (2010)

Wow! Such a good movie.

Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

It's not great by any means, but it's a pretty good movie that didn't leave me filled with regret for investing time in it.

This a great American family drama movie. Shows the ups and downs of a big crazy family with 2 boxers in the family. The big ''legend'' Bale and his young brother Wahlberg. This story is about how the younger brother who looks up to his crack addicted older ''legend' brother for guidance and advice, has to turn away from him and his toxic family to succeed in his boxing career. It shows the struggles of a young fighter as he attempts to turn his life around after always living in the shadows of his brother. How he faces dilemma's when confronted with his family and newfound love interest (amy adams) about what is good for his career. Walhberg does a good job with his role but the supporting cast take the cake. Bale, Melissa Leo and Adams all acted incredibly and are worthy of the awards. This just shows how well acted this whole film is.

Nothing in life ever comes easy. The Fighter, directed by David O. Russell, is a drama flick based on a true story about a boxer that displays how getting something in life takes effort. The film revolves around the Ward family who is deeply invested in boxing. Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg) is the hard-nosed boxer in the family. He is managed by his insensitive mother Alice Ward (Melissa Leo) and trained by his formerly successful half-brother Dickey Eklund (Christian Bale). This family orientated boxing team is by no means perfect. Dickey is a crack addict and Alice is negligent of it. Micky, who has lost his past few fights, begins to realize the faulty predicament he is in. Thus, this movie is the story of how Micky Ward sorts through his problems in order to get to the top of the boxing world. The Fighter, a beautifully crafted film that is perhaps one of the most motivational movies out there, reveals the hindrances family can cause and the importance of hard work and perseverance in the road to success.Right from the beginning the audience is immersed into the world in which Micky lives. Micky, drenched in sweat, is seen jogging around the old, rundown town sweeping the streets with a broom. Dickey is by his brothers' side motivating him to train. This opening scene is very well executed. The audience is able to see the town that Micky was brought up in. The camera follows Micky and Dickey as they make their run around town. Though not explicitly shown, the poverty of the town is revealed through the sub-par housing and the underprivileged people who live in these worn out buildings. The audience has an understanding of the rugged place that Micky comes from and this sets the tone for the rest of the movie. Micky's relationship with his family is quite rocky. Dickey, a crack addict, is supposed to be the role model for Micky. Yet, Dickey is caught a number of times at the crack house. If his dirty clothes and disgusting teeth were not enough to show that he is a crack addict, maybe the way he is constantly sweating and reliving his past by shadow boxing an imaginary Sugar Ray Leonard gives it away. Nonetheless, this is Micky's trainer. However, he rarely shows up and Micky is always trained by Mickey O'Keefe, the local police officer. Micky's mother Alice, who is also his manager, is negligent of the fact that Dickey is a druggy and therefore is blind to all the trouble that Micky receives from his family. In one scene, Alice and Dickey get Micky a fight against an unfair opponent just for the sake of getting payed. It is obvious that Micky is getting tied down by his family. Despite all of this adversity, Micky works hard for his dream of becoming a world champion. This task is definitely not easy; especially when his own family fails to provide the support he needs. Micky takes it upon himself and steps away from his family. This is of course very hard for him. All his life he had known nothing but his mother and brother. However, this is a step in the right direction for Micky and his career. Nonetheless, when he is faced with a challenging fight, he consults Dickey for help. Micky trains harder than he ever did and is on a mission to become the champion he always dreamed to be. Though one might say The Fighter is just like any other boxing movie which tells the story of an aspiring boxer, I would argue that this particular movie is better than the rest. This film illustrates the hardships that can be caused by family and how the strength and will to persevere and move on can lead to great things. The film is unique in the sense that it reveals the trials and tribulations Micky faces with great detail and leaves the audience with full understanding. One starts to feel for Micky and wishes they were in his corner cheering him on. After watching the film, I felt motivated to work harder at everything I did in life. I felt a fire burning inside of me that wouldn't go out until I achieved my dreams. This movie is a must watch and is a great source of inspiration.

On the rise to fame and success, a young boxer must decide whether to continue training with his family or seek professional training and management elsewhere in this sports drama based on true events. Mark Wahlberg is solid as the conflicted boxer in question and Amy Adams does well cast-against-type as his foul-mouthed bartender girlfriend, but is Christian Bale who steals every scene he is in as Wahlberg's older brother. A former boxing legend himself, Bale has delusions of grandeur and believes that the TV crew who have recently arrived to film him are making a documentary about his long awaited comeback when in reality they are making a film about his descent into heroine addiction. The overall film fascinatingly follows this structure too, opening with a lot of focus on Bale, only for Wahlberg to be eventually revealed as the true star (what a great metaphor for Bale's character coming to realise that not everything is about him). Melissa Leo also gets quite a bit of screen time as the brothers' overbearing mother, however, the rest of the family are disappointingly barely fleshed out all, including Jack McGee as Wahlberg's father, who could have been quite interesting given that he actually sides with Adams about his son's career. As for the sisters, they are all interchangeable stereotypes. This is, however, principally a film about the brothers and their every interaction is compelling. The end credits are also worth watching here for appearances by the brothers whose lives the film was based on - Dicky and Micky Ward.

I sat down with high expectations to view to this movie, partly because of Christian Bale's Academy Award and of David O. Russell's direction, and I wasn't disappointed. Christian Bale totally deserves his supporting actor Oscar and I think he should've also received it for his stunning acting in Brad Anderson's The Machinist. Mark Wahlberg's performance is quite shy near Bale's, but it's also great. David O. Russell's direction is amazing. It's clearly seen that Darren Aronofsky's participation as an executive producer gave a lot for this production. The cinematography is stunning. Hoyte van Hoytema is one of the best cinematographer of all time, beside Wally Phister, Roger Deakins and Emmanuel Lubeczki. There aren't any weak points of this drama. The story is complete and entertaining. This film is definitely worth a watch. It is in the best fighting/boxing based movies of the 21st century, among Clint Eastwood Million Dollar Baby, Darren Aronofsky's THe Wrestler and Gavin O'Connor's Warrior. 10/10