the fight film that makes Rocky look like Disney

Rating: 10/10 (8 July 2012)

Flawless, absolutely flawless. The (British) demi-god that is Tom Hardy has done it again... a superb performance as the broken embittered younger son returning "home" to fight against the wreckage of his early years, and quite predictably (it's in the trailer so not a spoiler) his brother, quite literally. Nick Nolte (who I have never liked up until now - although I knew he was a great actor) is the regretful sorrowful ex-drunk of a father trying to reunite with his sons, who presides over the unravelling feud. Joel Edgerton is a relatively up and coming actor and I think this is his first shot at the mega-big leagues... and what a trial by fire working alongside Hardy and Nolte (in that order IMHO)! This is a brutal fight film - mixed martial arts (MMA) where anything goes; what you would be arrested for outside the cage for GBH is par for the course inside it, where you have no idea how it will end (although you can guess at scenarios) and it keeps you pinned up against the fence until the last, the bloody action interspersed with story of incredible depth, sensitivity and heart. The characters were so finely drawn - Hardy playing a man who's past is revealed bit by bit and despite his animalistic (boy is he like a crazed cornered tiger) hate and fear driven madness you love him. Frank Grillo and Jennifer Morrison were great supporting cast and really add to the drama. But the genius of this film is that there is no damnable Hollywood ending - you are left, tears running down your cheeks, feeling as ragged as if you had just gone a round with Kobo, raw, and spent, heart in pieces with no tidy conclusion when it fades to black. I couldn't have coped with this at the cinema!!