Going the Distance, both in and out of the Ring

Rating: 10/10 (6 June 2005)

(Some Spoilers) Increidable but true depression era rags to riches "Cinderella Story" about the amazing comeback of boxer James "The Bergen New Jersey Bulldog" Braddock, Russell Crowe, who went from having to go on welfare, which he later honestly paid back, to be able to care for his family to become the Heavyweight Champion of the World. All this within the space of less then two short but unforgettable years.
A major prospect for becoming the Light-Heavyweight Champion of the world back in the late 1920's Braddock was soundly beaten on July 18, 1929 in a match with the fast fisted and fleet footed light heavyweight Tommy Loughran. Three months after the Loughran bout the Stock Market crashed and Jimmy, like tens of millions of fellow Americans, faced a bleak future with the high-living and fast-spending years of the 1920's becoming a distant memory with the Great Depresion descending upon America.
We see Jimmy four years later in 1933 at the end of the line as a professional boxer in his dull and boring match with Abe Feldman ,which ended after six rounds as a no contest. In his dressing room Jimmy is found to have broken his right hand and the New York State Boxing Commission has his boxing license revoked. The winter of 1933/34 was a cold and bitter one for the Braddock's with the heat turned off, because Jimmy was unable to pay the utilities, and with the Baddock's children being sent away, for a short time, to family members in Brooklyn because him and his wife Mae, Renee Zellweger, couldn't care for them. This really hurt Jimmy since he swore to his young son Jay never to give him or his brother and sister Howard & Rosey away to relatives no matter what happened.
By the late spring of 1934 Jimmy was at the end of his rope with little or no work on the Jersey docks, because of his broken right hand, and no chance to get back in the ring. It's then just like in the movies, mind you this is a true story, a miracle happened to Jimmy which also reflected, and uplifted, his friends and family and everyone else in America who had their hopes and dreams dashed to pieces by the Great Depression. It's was then that Jimmy's former manager Joe Gould, Paul Glamatti, got him a match, as well as his license back to box with his right hand having mended,on the under-card of the Heavyweight Championship fight between the champ Primo Carnera, Matthew G. Taylor, and the very dangerous challenger Max Baer, Craig Blerko.
Jimmy was picked by boxing promoter James Johnston, Bruce McGill,as a sacrificial lamb to be knocked out by the highly touted Corn Griffin, Art Binkowski. In the fight the desperate and brave Jimmy Barddock, after taking everything that Griffin threw at him,floored Griffin in the third round to the astonishment of everyone watching! With his boxing career now back on track Jimmy went on to beat John Henry Lewis, who beat Jimmy in a ten round decision in San Fanciso two years earlier, on Nevember 16, 1934. Jimmy then went on to defeat the very powerful and hard hitting Art Lasky on March 22, 1935 with is fancy footwork and superior boxing abilities.This set the scene up for the Heavyweight Championship bout between Jimmy and Max Baer in the Long Island Bowl on June 13, 1935. Exactly a year after he began his comeback by knocking out Corn Griffin in the same arena, Madison Square Garden, that Max Baer won the coveted title.
Jimmy, given no chance at all by the experts to defeat the "Big Bad Baer", In one of the most exciting and heart lifting boxing sequences ever put in a movie, as well as happening in real life, took the fight to Baer right from the opening bell. Freely mixing it with the champ Jimmy took everything that the "Killer" Max Baer could hit him with and gave back as good as he got in return. Clowning around at first Baer got serious later opening up on Jimmy with all the heavy artillery he had in his boxing gloves.
With tremendous courage, and ring savvy and boxing finesse, Jimmy fending off Baer's wild and desperate assaults in the late rounds was still holding on to a slim, but diminishing, lead as the bout went the full distance going into the 15th round.
In the fateful last round with him ahead on all cards Jimmy instead of trying to avoid Baer's punches, and run out the clock in order to win the Heavyweight Championship, mixed it up and stood toe to toe with the champ in the most exciting round of the entire fight. In the end Jimmy walked away with the title in a unanimous decision that left the crowd, at first quite and sullen, at the Long Island Bowl in complete pandemonium.
Jimmy Braddock's amazing victory gave the American people something to cheer about during those dark and bleak depression years. Jimmy Bradock was an underdog in every sense of the word yet overcame all the obstacles that were placed in front of him. In the end Jimmy showed that no matter how bad things are faith and belief in oneself is the most powerful force that one can have. And with that faith one can not only succeed over unbelievable odds but inspire others to do the same as well.
One of the most moving scenes in the movie "Cinderella Man" came just before the fight between Jimmy Braddock and Max Baer as Jimmy's wife Mae went into her church to light a candle and say a prayer for her courageous and valiant husband. To Mae's astonishment she saw that almost the entire town of North Bergen New Jersey were in the church doing the exact same thing!