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Rating: The story of two boxers and their family. Two brothers, from the same environment, the working-class neighborhoods of American provinces, completely different from each other: in the interview that opens the film, one of them says, "I play outside, he takes it inside."
Dicky (Christian Bale), a former fighter who challenged a living legend (Sugar Ray Leonard), and Micky (Mark Wahlberg), a naturally talented but unlucky boxer. Dicky spends his time doing drugs to dull the regret of a life that could have saved him from poverty, and (when lucid) trains his brother, to whom he is very attached. When the situation collapses, one arrested and the other in crisis, one last fight will redeem their lives. It will not only be Dicky, who sees redemption through his brother's success, that brings out Micky's talent, but also his girlfriend Charlene (Amy Adams), a bartender also escaping her own life, directly contrasting with the two's invasive mother (Melissa Leo), a real manager of her sons.
David O. Russell brings a true story to the screen, focusing especially on family relationships, the true subject of the film, much more than sports. The director of Three Kings, known for his difficult character (he has really punched many of his actors!), presents us with a film built with solidity, robust even if accessible to the general public. Unfortunately, the "shaky" hand-held camera is tedious, a choice made to enhance realism: some events are followed by a crew working on the life story (mostly the decline) of Dicky.
The strength of the film, ensuring its awards, is the acting challenge faced by the protagonists. First among all is Christian Bale, who lost a lot of weight for this role (not for the first time), giving us a feverish, convincing portrayal of the boy who never grew up and was crushed by adversity.
In all honesty, the film doesn't say anything new. We could say it’s an Oscar film, the kind that as soon as they are produced people whisper, "this will win the Oscar!" but then it is quickly forgotten. The storyline is predictable, a story of rise, then fall, and finally a comeback typical of the sports genre; then the similarities with other films on the theme, Rocky above all, especially regarding the American working-class setting. Other sports characters have been represented with greater emotional strength.
A remarkable film, then, but not exceptional. It had its moment of glory, like a boxer at his peak, but destined to be overshadowed in a short time.
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