Southpaw

Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rachel McAdams, Forest Whitaker, and Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, and Oona Laurence
Directed by: Antoine Fuqua
Screenplay by: Kurt Sutter

      Hooray!! Another boxing movie!
      This is the story of a famous light-heavyweight boxing champion, Billy Hope (Jake Gyllenhaal), and his fall from fame and rise back up to it.  Billy grew up in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York as a foster child.  When he was 12, he met a girl named Maureen (Rachel McAdams when Maureen is an adult).  Fast forward a number of years, and they are married with a daughter, Leila (Oona Laurence).  On top of that, being an undefeated fighter at 43-0, he's exceedingly wealthy.
       Tragedy strikes one night at a charity event Hope speaks at for the New York City child foster care system.  Maureen is unexpectedly killed at the event after an altercation between Hope and another famous boxer at the event.  Billy has a great deal of difficulty moving past the death of his wife, and sadly leads to far more hardships that will test him greatly.  All his money is starting to dry up and he doesn't have another fight lined up (although his promoter, Jordan Mains, played by 50 Cent, is doing his best to get Billy back into the ring).  And, to make things worse, the Court finds that Billy is an unfit father for his daughter Leila, sending her into child protective services until he can take care of himself so he can get her back.
       The job of getting him back into the ring goes to Tick Wills (Forest Whitaker), a boxing trainer who helps a lot of kids stay off the streets.  At first, Tick is unwilling to help Billy because he feels he's thrown his life away.  Will Billy be able to get back into the ring and make things right for himself and his daughter in the absence of his wife?
       If you've seen any ads for this movie, you probably know half the story already, and much of the information I've just given you is likely not news to you.  That's because the ads for this movie give way too much of the story away.  The single most important event in this film is Maureen's death, which is shown in the ads.  This is one of those films where the ads might have you wondering if you really need to see the film at all.
       So, why should you see this film?  It's like watching a real life boxing match in some places.  The camera work is fantastic, showing all the angles you might see on a normal boxing match and more.  The matches are not quite as long as they would be if you were watching one on pay per view, but they are just as intense (if it is a good match).  Fortunately, the movie provides such scenes that make Jake Gyllenhaal look like a true professional fighter.  But I'll talk more about Gyllenhaal's performance in a moment.
       The background on many of these characters is weak.  It's clear where Billy and Maureen came from and how that affected both of them, but it's not clear how they kept in contact for so long and eventually got together.  It also is unclear where Tick Wills comes from.  All we see is that he owns a boxing gym somewhere in the city and that he trains young men how to fight.  But why does he train them how to fight yet not let them go to the professional level?  He even mentions that he doesn't train professionals (although Billy Hope is his lone exception), but why?
       At one point in the film, Billy talks to Leila about how Maureen used to make all the decisions for all three of them.  The problem I have with this is that Maureen is a character in the film for only the first twenty to thirty minutes or so.  Rachel McAdams has very little screen time.  This is a positive aspect because it focuses the film mainly on Billy, but a negative aspect because it does not give the viewer enough time to see quite how she is the one in charge of the family.  McAdams delivers a strong performance, but she does not have enough time on screen as perhaps necessary.
       Forest Whitaker delivers a strong performance.  He is a fantastic actor in any movie he's in, but in Southpaw he seems incredibly natural in his role.  It's like the role was written specifically for him to play it.
       It is very clear who the star of the film is.  In 2014, Jake Gyllenhaal was in a movie called Nightcrawler, in which he delivered the finest performance perhaps of his career.  He has outdone himself with Southpaw.  This is the kind of film that can truly blend the actor with the character to the point where one may not be able to imagine anyone else playing that particular role.  Gyllenhaal is phenomenal not only as an actor, but as a boxer as well in this Oscar worthy performance.  As I sat there watching the film, I forgot that there was an actor behind this role.  He is truly outstanding and this role shows that his acting ability has gone to a whole new level.
       Southpaw might not be the best boxing movie ever when compared to other boxing films like Rocky, but it's a darn good one.  It's just long enough and just intense enough to keep the audience interested, but not make it feel like a sporting event.  So, even if the ads around your city or on television or anywhere else have possibly spoiled it for you, think about seeing it anyway.
       I give Southpaw an A-.

Image from www.eminem.com