The Fighter is a film is based on a true story following two boxing brothers from Lowell, Mass.

Rating: 8/10 (29 April 2012)

The Fighter is a film is based on a true story following two boxing brothers and their family who live in Lowell, Massachusetts during the early 90's. The two brothers Dicky Eklund (Christian Bale), and Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg) come from a big family. Their mother, Alice Ward (Melissa Leo) is Mickys manager, Dicky is his unreliable boxing coach, and they have many sisters who help out at the gym. Dicky had his chance in the spotlight when he fought and "knocked out" Sugar Ray Leonard back in the mid 1980's. Micky is a struggling "stepping stone" fighter and is constantly overshadowed by Dicky in almost everything he does. In the beginning, the viewer is under the impression that Dicky is making a "comeback" because he is being followed around by HBO.
Alice and Dicky book a bad fight and Micky loses again. Following the fight Micky is given a great opportunity to train in Las Vegas and get paid, but turns it down because Dicky says he will come up with money to pay him to train and stay in Lowell with the family. In the process of trying to make money, illegally, Dicky gets arrested and goes to jail. We find out he is not making a "comeback" but really HBO is making a documentary about crack cocaine addiction. When Dicky is in jail, Micky is starting to get serious with Charlene Fleming (Amy Adams) and that's when things start to change. Micky starts making choices that are better for his life and career, rather than letting his family handle everything. This is where the theme is most present. Micky feels he must choose between family and a career, and he doesn't realize that he can have both he just needs to have balance. The theme of this film is very similar to the film Warrior, which is also based on a true story of two brothers who fight in the UFC (O'Connor, 2011).
The editor did a great job with this film. I was entertained throughout the film because of the action and how he pieced the scenes together. One of the editing techniques I enjoyed was the change of film stock during the flashbacks and memories. The film was very rough and grainy and looked dated, it was very realistic. The passage of time was made easier with quite a few montages but they were all necessary. The montages reminded me of the training montages in the film Rocky. My favorite part of this movie was the freeze frame at the end, when Dicky is holding up Mickys arm to signify the victory and we get to see that moment frozen in time and it captures the emotion perfectly. Overall this is a great film about fighting for your career and family and standing up for what is right for you.
References O'Connor, G. (Director). (2011). Warrior Motion Picture. Russell, D. O. (Director). (2010). The Fighter Motion Picture.