Restore your faith in movies

Rating: 9/10 (5 June 2005)

As I left the theater after seeing Cinderella Man, I was perplexed by a feeling I couldn't identify. It wasn't until I was in my car beginning the journey home that I realized what I had been feeling. I had been moved by this movie. I had experienced the full-hearted, satisfied, thrilled sensation of having seen something wonderful.
It is a cliché that people need heroes. Cliché it may be, but people do need heroes; more so during times of great trouble. Cinderella Man tells the story of a man who became a hero for millions of Americans during the Great Depression. As the film opens, James J. Braddock (Russell Crowe) is a boxer on the way up. The year is 1929 and he is on the fast track to a contention bout for the Light Heavyweight world championship title. But the time frame of the film quickly changes to 1933 and we learn that Braddock was soundly beaten early on his path to the title and is considered washed up by the 1930's. The Depression is in full, horrible swing and Braddock works on the loading docks when he can. He also gets an occasional boxing match, which helps pay the bills and keep poverty just barely outside the door. He is a family man, in love with his wife, Mae (Renee Zellweger) and a caring father to his children. He boxes because, as a newspaper headline informs us, 15,000,000 people are out of work. He boxes when he shouldn't, with a hand not properly healed from a break and it shows in his performance. In a bout which is, to Braddock, just about the money to pay bills, he re-breaks his hand and spends the rest of the fight dancing and weaving. Because of his poor performance, the fight is stopped. The fight promoter, Jimmy Johnston (Bruce McGill, whose face will certainly be recognizable to many viewers), enraged at Braddock's poor showing, revokes his license to fight. Just like that, the main source of income, solvency and pride for Braddock and his family is gone.
Braddock's situation, as it did for so many Americans in those years only worsens. Braddock humbles himself more than once, but counts it all as worth it to keep his family together. After weathering a Winter that almost destroys the family, Braddock is visited by his former Trainer/Manager Joe Gould (Paul Giamatti). Gould brings news that the boxing commission is willing to allow Braddock to fight one more fight because they are desperate for a last minute replacement opponent for a fight the next day at Madison Square Garden. For Braddock, it is a chance to make $250, and also a chance to perform his swan song at Madison Square Garden. The result of that fight isn't hard to imagine, but it is thrilling to watch. And as Braddock's story unfolds, it provides humor, exceptional thrills and deep satisfaction for the viewer.
It is always a difficult task for filmmakers to tell a sports related story. Every single cast and crew member must be at the peak of their game if it is to be done successfully. Sports fan viewers will want a movie filled with sporting (in this case boxing) scenes, but a two hour film cannot be sustained by just sports scenes. Otherwise, why not just put a recording of the fight/baseball game/soccer match on screen for two hours. No, a sports movie must have an underlying reason for us to root for the hero of the tale. To root for a person you must understand what drives them, what makes them happy and what saddens them. In this case, it is the mix of the tale of the boxing ring and the tale of the wedding ring that gives this story it's depth. For Braddock lives to provide as well as he can for his wife and family in some of the worst times in recent history. Without doubt, the boxing scenes are thrilling and well staged. Each punch reverberates through the viewer's senses and shatters a little more of their reticence. Until finally the viewer is completely immersed in the battle between the opponents. Not just because it is thrilling to watch, but because we know what every punch thrown and landed means to Braddock.
The film is executed so well that it is worth reminding oneself that the writers, actors and director of Cinderella Man are so often so superb at what they do that one might begin to take it for granted. Instead, savor the grace and recognize the purity that is this movie. From Akiva Goldsman's (A Beautiful Mind) deft screenplay (co-written with Cliff Hollingsworth from a story by Hollingsworth) to Ron Howard's willingness to allow his actor's eyes to speak for them when words would be less effective, to actors Zellweger, Giamatti and Crowe. Crowe, in particular surprises as he delves into territory we have not seen him visit before. Whereas in the past he has excelled at playing tortured, wise or strong souls, here he inhabits the nice, loving man that is Braddock. A skin that is as difficult to wear as any of the others he has slipped into in the past.
Cinderella Man is more than an antidote to all the bluster and hype that is the Summer movie season. It is a truly great film on many levels. One that may leave you with a feeling you haven't had in a long time when leaving a theater. Allow me to identify it for you. You have been moved. Enjoy.