Overlong, feel good take on boxing family dysfunction, still entertains

Rating: 6/10 (25 April 2011)

With so many fight flicks out there, it helps to be a little bit different. The film's creator, Mark Wahlberg, wisely explores Prizefighter Micky Ward's family conflicts for three quarters of the film, rather than dwelling mainly on the conflicts in the ring. Wahlberg was attracted to Ward's story since they both grew up in large families, in a working class Massachusetts environment. For those who have no interest in astrology, I apologize, but I would like to point out that the natural inquisitive nature of a Gemini (Wahlberg), goes quite well with the laid back, easygoing Libran (Ward). What we end up with 'The Fighter' is an 'airy' concoction—a film that manages to exude a 'feel good' sensibility coupled with the strong dialectic between two brothers, whose mutual attraction and repulsion is constantly shifting.
Since 'The Fighter' is based on the true story of Ward's rise to the top as a champion welterweight, whenever reality weasels its way into the narrative, the film is quite absorbing. The entire scene where Ward, goaded by his mother, agrees to fight an opponent twenty pounds heavier than he is, and then gets his ass kicked, is something I've never seen before in a boxing film. Ward's brother, Dicky (played by a chameleon-like Christian Bale), also provides a great deal of 'color' to an otherwise traditional tale of pugilistic ambition. Who can forget when Micky ignores his trainer's game plan and adopts his brother's strategy to win the title fight? This despite Dicky's continual descent into the hellhole of crack addiction.
The bulk of 'The Fighter', however, is much more a tale of filial obligation (or should I say obsession?) than the history of Micky Ward's ascent to the welterweight crown. Why does it take Micky so long to realize that Dicky is actually holding him back? The answer in a nutshell is misguided filial obligation. A deeper subtext is that the Ward brothers are both in an unconscious incestuous relationship with their mother (played by an over the top Melissa Leo). While Micky eventually breaks free, Dicky takes a more circuitous route toward redemption. He must first go to prison where he finally overcomes his crack addiction and eventually allows his brother to fight without any conditions (that is, with Dicky no longer acting as if his brother owed him something).
I would urge anyone who has seen 'The Fighter', to also see Visconti's "Rocco and his Brothers"--both films deal with two brothers who are prizefighters. In 'Rocco', the stakes are much higher: the successful prizefighter brother also has a misguided filial obligation to his now washed up sibling. Unlike Dicky (who eventually gives up his unhealthy family relationships), Rocco covers for his brother who has committed both rape and murder. Unlike the Visconti classic, Wahlberg is content to offer up a happy ending, where Dicky is welcomed into Micky's new boxing family, accepted by them despite all the past recriminations.
The three principals here all acquit themselves well. The most impressive aspect of Wahlberg's performance is his physical conditioning; he trained for four years to get himself into shape to play this role. Even better is Christian Bale as Dicky. Bale lost approximately sixty pounds to play Micky's crack-addicted brother; when you first see him, you won't even realize it's Christian Bale. Amy Adams finally breaks out of her 'good girl' roles and plays a sexy, working class gal who helps Micky break his ties with his mother.
Less successful is Melissa Leo as Alice Ward, the mother of the seven daughters. Yes, we get the idea that she's a control freak, but does all that 'control freak' stuff have to repeat itself ad infinitum? The daughters (described by many critics as a virtual "Greek Chorus"), provide additional cartoonish machinations; the stale comic relief reaches its apotheosis in the scene where the daughters try and pummel Micky's girlfriend, Charlene.
Micky Ward's victory during the Championship Fight in London seems a bit anti-climactic. Wahlberg went to great lengths to reproduce the actual fight as it appeared on HBO in 2000. The actual recording of the HBO announcers was utilized during the film and the fight sequences were choreographed to match the actual movements of the boxers. It just seems kind of lazy to pad the end of your film with the reproduction of an actual event, which you could probably better enjoy by watching the real thing.
'The Fighter' probably would have worked better had it been cut down by about 20 to 30 minutes. A good number of the scenes feel as if they're improvised and sometimes drag a bit. Nonetheless, the holy trinity of Wahlberg, Bale and Adams, make this fairly traditional boxing yarn, entertaining. Wahlberg stays true to his Gemini sign—there is something for everybody here: whether it be over the top acting performances, intense family conflict with incestuous undertones and gritty recreations of fighters plying their trade in the ring.