Knockout?

Rating: 8/10 (23 March 2011)

The Fighter is an actor's film. It's a great story. It's not all about boxing and more so it is about going through an internal struggle and getting by things that hold you back.
This is clearly Christian Bale's movie, and comparing the performance to Colin Firth's in The King's Speech, Bale is miles ahead. Bale astounds the audience playing the role of Dicky Eklund. He is not even acting, it seems. As you watch the real Dicky when the movie ends and credits roll, it looks as though it's the same person in the movie. Bale clearly deserved his praise and awards that he received.
However, there are a lot of things I didn't like in the movie. For one thing, Amy Adams is shown as the ultimate woman in this film and she is consistently showing lots of flesh in the film. I also felt it could have been a little better choreographed for the fight scenes. It wasn't focused on the boxing, however, and perhaps that was one thing that they missed an opportunity at.
If you don't have Christian Bale and Mark Wahlberg, this movie wouldn't be as good. They are the ones who make this movie genius, and that's why this is an actor's movie. Aside from actors, this film has passable cinematography and very subpar boxing choreography. But, the acting boosts it up and makes it one of the better films on the year.
It's not quite on the level as Rocky (maybe Rocky V) but that's because it isn't a boxing movie, really. It's more of a movie about heart and overcoming obstacles and growing as a person. It's not for everyone, but if you like inspirational movies, this is a good one for the time.