The Vidiot Reviews...

Rating: 8/10 (18 March 2011)

The Fighter
The best thing about being a boxer is that after retiring due to all those concussions, you're primed for a career in the NHL.
Unfortunately, the aged boxer in this drama can't ice-skate.
Sick of being a stepping-stone for other, better fighters, 'Irish' Mickey Ward (Mark Wahlberg) decides to make an honest go of it.
Trained in the shadow of his once triumphant, now strung-out older half-brother Dicky (Christian Bale) and mismanaged by his controlling mother Alice (Melissa Leo), Mickey goes nowhere.
It is not until he meets a fiery waitress (Amy Adams) that he decides to look out for his own best interest, and ditch his family.
Striking the perfect balance between great acting, superb directing and a terrific script, this true-life boxing bout packs a wallop.
Furthermore, unlike other man-on-man sports, boxing doesn't end with the fighters on the ground with their heads cradled in each other's crotches. (Green Light)