Learning To Live After Self Destruction

Rating: 9/10 (18 October 2015)

I think it's kind of universal in that everyone likes a underdog story. Southpaw wastes little precious time in letting us in on the long-shot nature of Billy Hope as he's now at the top. But wait, whatever the story is we're here and Billy has already made it so this isn't really an underdog story at all. But, the life of a orphan who became a world-class boxer isn't going to be wine and roses just because he's now at a pinnacle of his sport. When you're at the top doesn't the old saying go "there's no place left to go except down"? Old clichés' which have stood the test of time have a core that often is, mostly, a hard truth.
A boxer by nature, no matter how good, is often one fight away from his career being over, and not by choice. It's a fickle sport with a potent unknown around every corner waiting for their own long-shot success. As Southpaw begins Billy Hope is at that intersection of what comes next after reaching the top. His wife is urging him to take a break, or quit, before that disaster occurs. The disaster will occur, but it won't exactly be what one might think even as this seems like a movie you've seen before. In everything that proceeds Jake Gyllenhaal is close to perfect in bringing the fictitious life, and heartache, of Billy Hope to the screen. There's a new king of boxing movies, Jake Gyllenhaal is Southpaw in every sense of the phrase. Great movie, highly recommended! Two other fantastic performances,, though paling in comparison, are turned in by Forest Whittaker (Tick Willis) and Miguel Gomez ( "Magic" Escobar).