Formulaic but worth watching for Gyllenhaal's performance

Rating: Null/10 (30 July 2015)

I have no interest in boxing, which I think is a brutal sport, but I really admire Jake Gyllenhaal as an actor so I was willing to see this movie in which he takes the eponymous role. In "Nightcrawler", Gyllenhaal was amazing, both for his lean appearance and brilliant portrayal of a man determined to better himself at any cost. This time, he has beefed up his body in another total transformation that took five months and gives another very impressive performance as Billy Hope, a boxer who goes from the heights to the depths and back again.
Rachel McAdams as Billy's wife and Forrest Whitaker as his trainer give strong supporting turns, while as his young daughter Oona Lawrence is surprisingly convincing for her age. Director Antoine Fuqua provides some opening and closing fight scenes that are genuinely hard-hitting. But there is nothing new or surprising here; it is totally predictable and formulaic and old-fashioned. It is Gyllenhaal that makes it a movie worth watching.