It's not just MMA that makes this different.

Rating: 9/10 (22 January 2016)

What amazes me most about this film is that it perfectly develops the relationship between Tommy, Brendan and their Father without ever using flashbacks or long exposition sequences explaining why their relationship was where it was. You understand the complexities of their relationship by attaining a few details of the story during each sequence allowing you to slowly piece together the past so you can better understand the present. By doing this, the viewer feels an emotional connection to each character. Part of me cheered for Brendan while feeling like Tommy was unnecessarily cruel to his Father. But then later in the film I became much more sympathetic to Tommy in part because the pieces of history provided throughout the film allowed me to better understand that character. As a result, I was connected to every character in this film making the finale that much more emotional.
The fight sequences in this film are some of the best I've ever scene in a movie like this. They feel visceral and rough while also feeling majestic enough to make the professional skill of these fighters believable. The fight choreography and cinematography work together seamlessly to convey a frenetic feeling to the audience while still allowing them to see the fights in all their glory. The little shaky cam that exists works beautifully, and I never felt cheated from the fight scenes as a result.
This film is masterful in every sense of the world. There isn't one scene that feels out of place or unnecessary. It's edited in such a lean way often making you forget its two hour and nineteen minute run time.
Director Gavin O'Connor is able to sidestep the rudimentary conventions that dominate most boxing movies. It's not just MMA that makes this film feel different from films like Rocky, Southpaw, The Fighter and Cinderella Man. This is an emotional story of two brothers and the pain that they must sift through in order to find true peace. And it's this story that separates it from the rest of the pack and makes it feel fresh and new.
Story - 9.5/10 Action - 9.5/10 Cinematography/Score - 9/10 Pacing/Length - 9.5/10 Acting - 10/10
Overall Rating - 9.5/10
Overall Score - A+