'The Fighter' Review

BAFTA and Oscar nominated film, ‘The Fighter’, is out now in UK Cinemas.

The film which has received much praise, especially for the performance of Christian Bale, has only one fault - ask anyone to describe it and the majority will tell you it’s simply ‘Rocky VII’.

The plot of the film is based on a true story, that of 'Irish' Mickey Ward, a boxer from Lowell, Massachusetts who is trained by his wayward, crack-addicted brother, Dick 'Dicky' Eklund, a local hero due to his own boxing career which saw him fight Sugar Ray Leonard. Add an overbearing mother into the scene as Ward’s manager, and it is not hard to see why his promising boxing career soon spirals downhill. When Dicky is arrested and beaten by police, Ward tries to intervene but ends up having his hand smashed by a vengeful cop, temporarily halting his career. As Dicky serves time in jail, a family rift is formed as Ward, urged on by his girlfriend, takes on a new manager and promises to never train with Dicky again. With his revitalised career on the up, and a title shot looming, Ward must face up to the fact that he needs his troubled brother's help to get to the top.

Whilst the trio of Mark Wahlberg, Amy Adams and Christian Bale, all deliver top performances, with the latter most prominently shining, unfortunately the script is one we’ve all seen before. It could be argued that the drama conjured by the division of the family is engaging and original enough to separate this movie from one of ‘Rocky’ movies, however you almost expected the ‘Rocky’ theme tune to start playing when Wahlberg’s character enters the ring.

Although, employing an overused plot; the witty script, believable characters, and well-filmed boxing scenes, ensure an overall enjoyable new-take on the ever popular sporting underdog story.

Certification: 15. Running time: 115 mins