Great acting work all over

Rating: 7/10 (29 August 2015)

The movie is indeed very predictable and a true cliché in terms of the story. It feels like someone blends in the Rocky-Junior relationship drama from Rocky V and the comeback drama from Rocky III then added the wife's death as the linking trigger. Also the movie presents to many plots that it didn't do enough justice in closing, such as the side plots with the crew, with Hoppy, and even with Tick. Yet the movie still stands tough with its exquisite acting performance. Jake Gyllenhaal deserves most of the credit for this as he really nailed both parts of his role as the father and the fighter. Rachel McAdams, although only in the movie for about half an hour, made sure her presence felt significant and her absence influential. Oona Laurence is surprising as she can really balance both McAdams and Gyllenhaal's acting. Forest Whitaker's performance really completes the movie's awesome acting level in general.