Excellent acting, great direction and worth the price of the rental

Rating: 10/10 (22 February 2006)

Whenever I see a Russell Crowe movie, I expect it to be good. Same goes for movies directed by Ron Howard. I was not disappointed by Cinderella Man, which was far better than all the Rockys put together. Maybe it's because it was based on a true story. Maybe it's because the fight scenes seemed believable. If you look at film of the real Braddock-Baer fight, you know that the fighting in the movie was a little more lively and exaggerated. But it was still believable, unlike the footage from a typical Rocky movie. And what can I say about the performance by Paul Giamatti. Never heard of the guy before, but I want to see him in another movie to see if his great performance was due to a perfect role for him or because he's a great actor. No question about Crowe's acting ability. One recommendation I would have, even if you have great hearing, is to run the captioning when you watch the movie. There are lots of low points and instances, such as right before the start of the championship fight, where lots of people are talking at the same time. A guy movie that is sentimental enough for chicks to like too.