The Fighter

Plot synopsis:
As a welterweight from the wrong side of the tracks, Dickie Eklund is the pride of working class Lowell, Massachusetts. Living in his shadow is his half-brother and sparring partner Micky Ward. It's part of the Irish pride to let Dickie lead the way and win a championship belt first. However, after suffering a humiliating defeat to Sugar Ray Leonard, Dickie plunges into a nightmare of crack addiction, violence and prison. His family's hopes are crushed in the wake of Dickie's demise. Like a real life Rocky, Micky fights on his own terms and pulls his family out of despair with his meteoric rise in the ring. Freshly paroled Dickie finds redemption training his little brother, now known as "Irish" Micky Ward, for his Welterweight Championship bout with Shea Neary.-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Dick Eklund (Christian Bale) sits on a sofa in 1993 and talks to the camera about his boxing career and fight with Sugar Ray Leonard. His brother Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg) sits beside him and Dick says Micky is a boxer also but has a different style.At a crossroads the two brothers work preparing asphalt for paving. Dicky jokes around for a camera crew. Dicky and Micky walk through a neighborhood of Lowell, MA followed by a HBO camera crew. They greet and joke with a variety of locals and shopkeepers. Micky is serious, Dicky playful and goofy.Micky is at a gym waiting for Dicky to train. An older man, a cop Micky O'Keefe (as self) steps in to help. Mother Alice Eklund (Melissa Leo) arrives and tells O'Keefe to get out, it is Dicky's job, the two argue. Dicky is smoking up with friends, he is two hours late before he runs off to the gym. Micky works the speed bag on his own as Dicky arrives panting. Dicky tells the camera crew Micky has lost three in a row. They train, Alice and Dicky reminisce about the Leonard fight.The whole family is at a bar, Alice and her daughters explain who is who in the large family of Eklunds and Wards. At a bar Micky eyes the attractive bartender Charlene (Amy Adams). They chat and a gallant Micky asks her out for Saturday, when he returns from a big televised fight in Atlantic City.Micky goes to see his daughter at his ex's house, she is very bitter as it is not a regular visit day. He tells the young girl Kasie this next fight will be his big break and he will get a bigger apartment.Everyone is ready to leave in the stretch limo but Dicky is missing. They stop off at a green house, Dicky has been using drugs and has lost track of time. Alice knocks on the door and Dicky tries to duck out the back window. The family has a squabble in the backyard, Dicky slugs his step father George Ward (Jack McGee) and Micky is exasperated.In Atlantic City the promoter says the planned opponent has had to cancel because of the flu but there is a replacement. The other fighter is 19 pounds heavier but supposedly poorly trained, Micky is hesitant but Dicky assures him it will be OK. In the ring Micky is battered and beaten badly by the larger man.The gang run into a dapper Sugar Ray Leonard who greets Dicky politely but makes a quick exit to get away from him. A promoter, Mike Toma, offers Micky a chance to come and train in Las Vegas and receive a monthly paycheque. Micky sits forlornly as the rest of entourage drink up in the stretch limo on the way home, they put down the Vegas idea.Back home, Alice says she will find a better fight next time, Micky goes into hiding with a heavily bandaged face. He watches old home movies. Charlene comes looking for him demanding to know why she was stood up for their date. Micky takes her to a suburban movie complex where they suffer through a boring art flick. He then says he was embarrassed to lose and show his face in Lowell. They kiss.Three weeks later Alice looks for Micky, one of the seven sisters tells Alice he is with the tramp from the bar, they all disparage Charlene.Alice finds Dicky at the green crack house, she is in tears as Dicky tries to cheer her up. they both sing "I started a joke..." song. Micky has Charlene over to meet the family as Alice and Dicky arrive at the house. The women start bickering right away. Alice has a new fight lined up at Foxwoods for $17500 but Micky and Charlene appear set to go their own way.Dicky talks with the gang at the crack house on some scheme to get $200 ea from 10 people, they turn him down.Charlene shows off her high jump skills to a happy Micky. At night Dicky observes a street walker pick up a trick. He pretends to be a cop but is chased by real cops. There's a street fight and wild melee, Micky comes to help and the brothers are arrested and Micky's hand is hurt.Dicky is arraigned on muliple charges while Micky is released, his right hand in a cast. Dicky is sent to jail and is walked to his cell to the chants of the other prisoners. Micky is depressed and tells Charlene he is finished fighting, but she convinces him to meet a new manager.Dicky is in his cell and goes through the DT's as he withdraws from his drug addiction. Micky works as a roofer, his hand heals. Dicky is feted as the guest of honour at a prison showing of the HBO special. It turns out the documentary "Crack in America" is about him as a pathetic drug addict and not as a plucky boxer striving for a comeback. Micky phones his ex-wife to not let his daughter watch the show about her uncle but the ex gleefully allows Kasie to see the grim story unfold on the screen. At the Ward/Eklund house the family are stunned by the show, they don't let Dicky's son watch. It finally hits a nerve with Dicky and he turns off the TV to angry jeers from his fellow inmates. Charlene comes over to Micky's to commiserate. Dicky is depressed.Early the next morning Micky slips out to go to the gym, under O'Keefe's guidance. Music video training montage, Micky trains on the streets, Dicky trains in prison also. O"Keefe introduces Micky to Sal Nanano (Frank Renzulli), the deal is no Dicky no Alice. They will start small, start local.Alice is furious at George for cutting her out as Manager. The seven sisters and Alice pile into a car and head to Charlene's, blaming her for the breakup. As Micky and Charlene engage in loving foreplay the angry women arrive. There's a hair-pulling cat fight on the porch, Micky tells his family to f*** off and slams the door.Micky gets his game face on for his next fight, his robe labelled "Irish Micky Ward". In round 4 he batters his opponent and wins easily. Several more victories follow as Micky is "back in the saddle again".In prison Dicky trains hard himself to stay in shape. Micky visits and they discuss the next fight with the heavily favoured Sanchez, Dicky says Micky is being used as a stepping stone. Micky leaves upset but Dicky gives him parting advice to hit to the body with his left.Alfonso Sanchez from Mexico is undefeated and highly touted on HBO. The fight starts and Sanchez hits Micky hard. After five rounds everyone thinks the fight should be stopped. By the eighth round the beating continues and Micky is dropped but manages to get up. Alice describes the action to Dicky over the phone. Suddenly Micky lands a heavy kidney shot with his left and Sanchez drops like he was shot, Micky wins!In the locker room eveyone is jubilant. Sal comes in with big time promoter Mike Toma who says Micky has earned a title shot and congratulates him on his strategy.Dicky is released from prison and meets his son and Alice outside the gates. They go to the gym to see Micky training. The welcomes are initially warm and friendly, the seven sisters arrive with a cake. Then an argument starts, Charlene and O'Keefe demand Dicky leave, Alice and Dicky say Micky needs them. Micky wants them all to get along but Charlene and O'Keefe storm out. Then, in sparring Micky brutally knocks Dicky to the mat, as Alice comes to his aid Micky cries out that Dicky has always been the mother's favourite.Dicky walks away with the cake, he approaches the green crack house with his old drug buddies gathered outside. They greet him and expect a return to old times but Dicky pauses, gives them the cake and moves on. He goes to Charlene's house to talk. She fills the air with expletives to get him to leave but finally agrees to talk. Dicky acknowledges they hate each other but Micky needs them both, Charlene finally begrudgingly agrees. Micky shows up and hugs Charlene as Dicky continues walking away down the street.Now the two brothers train well together as Dicky pushes Micky hard.The family is in London for the weigh-in for the big WBU welterweight title fight with Shea Neary. The undefeated Neary and his manager diss Micky and his abilities at the press conference, Micky glowers at them but doesn't return the trash talk.Micky enters the arena to the crowd boos Dicky singing along and pumping up his younger brother. Neary follows to the cheers of his adoring home crowd. In the ring Neary starts fast and batters Micky, who covers up and absorbs the punishment. In the 7th round Micky is knocked to the canvas but gets up at the bell and Dicky revives him in the corner. Dicky gives him a motivational speech to push him to do better than he ever did. A determined Micky gets up and starts taking the battle to Neary. The two men trade punches, finally Micky connects and down goes Neary! He gets up but again is quickly knocked down, Micky wins by TKO! The crowd is stunned as Micky's entourage celebrate.Back on the sofa in front of the camera, Dicky proudly talks about his kid brother Micky, sitting beside him.

Tags: dramatic, home movie

Review:
First of all, the four principle characters: Micky, Dicky, Charlene and Alice are unlike anyone one has seen in this kind of film.They are wonderfully defined and the actors who portray them are cast against type and turn in their finest performance.
That's because most of the fighting in this film takes place out of the ring; "Irish" Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg) spars with the troublesome brother who trains him and his mother who manages him and these superb supporting characters have their own challengers to overcome.David O.
Leo keeps Alice from being an aggravating total monster, providing a more complete picture of a mother whose blurred the line between business and family.Amy Adams also excels in her supporting role, a bartender and college dropout, but one who — like the audience — sees how Micky's family has kept him back and as his girlfriend pushes him toward the right path.
Interestingly, as she grows more invested in Micky's career, the script divides her from the audience, which gives her performance more weight.Russell's characters have a harsh reality to them, much like the Boston-based characters in Ben Affleck's films "Gone Baby Gone" and "The Town." In addition to looks, clothes and mannerisms, Russell chooses a more hand-held documentary feel for the film like Darren Aronofsky's "The Wrestler" and even opts to film parts of the boxing sequences with lenses like the ones used in the late '90s to give the feel of watching a live broadcast.The fights, though effective, remain secondary to the other "fighting." Watching Dickie spiral downward and come back up again, Alice have trouble letting go and Micky struggle to speak up for himself and recognize what he truly needs serves as the more compelling conflict.
As Dickie urges on his brother in the waning rounds of the championship fight, he captures it perfectly when he says "everything that's happened, take that out there with you."The emotional moments of "The Fighter" do lack a real knockout and many intimate moments are tempered with humor in awkward but not scene-ruining ways, but rather than be a heavyweight drama that rides the underdog story for two hours, "The Fighter" opts to be something a bit more natural by fixing on the right things: the people and the personal relationships that hurt or harm us, are all essential to our success.~Steven CVisit my site at http://moviemusereviews.com.
But it's also the acting that distinguishes it: Christian Bale as Dicky transforms himself again by losing weight and morphing into a manic brother who loves Micky despite Dicky's negative life of drugs and mania; Amy Adams is believable as the gritty but beautiful girl friend; and Melissa Leo plays mom like a lady Macbeth in tight Dockers.Although there will be heavier films competing for 2010's Oscar, I can't think of another whose cast so eloquently has caught the poverty and riches of a town caught in boxing fever..
Bale's finely etched creation of Dicky and Wahlberg's extraordinary dual turn as producer and star in the role of Dicky's brother Micky should place both men front and center for Oscar nominations along with Russell who shaped the film with a keen sensitivity.
I was at screening of "The Fighter" in the Beverly Hills theater with Director David O'Russell and main Cast ( Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Amy Adams ,Melissa Leo) The Director and cast show their love and passion for this film and how hard they all worked to make this possible in their very warm words and replies to the questions from the audience.
This is sure to go down as one of Bale's most remembered roles, and hopefully his enormous talent will finally be recognized by winning an Academy Award for it.Behind every great man is a great woman, and Amy Adams also delivers a fantastic performance as Micky's girlfriend, who really helps him develop some backbone and at the same time is able to find some clarity in her misguided life.
The Fighter is based on the true story of boxer "Irish" Micky Ward's unlikely rise through the ranks to the WBU (World Boxing Union) light-welterweight title.Micky's story would be a conventional sports film if not for the presence of his half-brother Dicky, a boxer-turned-trainer whose life was screwed up by crack addiction and the petty crimes that associated with that life.The brother, played by Christian Bale, makes the story interesting and charges it emotionally.
You know he is a drug-addled screw up and you know he is going to mess up his brother's life, but the brother loves him and is loyal to him so you want to see Davy rise above his problem.One of Bale's best scenes was shot on the front porch of the house where Charlene, Micky's girlfriend (played by Amy Adams) lives.
While Wahlberg is unmoving, Amy Adams' performance reaches out and emotionally draws the scenes together.The Fighter has dimension to it, and a lot of the depth from the supporting cast.The mother played with conviction by Melissa Leo. She runs a family home surrounded by seven adult daughters, and all seem to either be living at home or visiting their mother a lot.
Russell's best film to date that may not rank amongst the finest examples of its genre but it still serves as a competently crafted sports biopic that's less about the sport & more about the athlete, his family & his path to redemption.The story of The Fighter follows the life of professional boxer Micky Ward who withdraws from the boxing world after suffering a humiliating defeat in a match he already had reservations about.
Russell (best known for Silver Linings Playbook & American Hustle), the story journeys the same route that majority of boxing films tend to take plus also falls flat in between on a few occasions but what infuses a vibrant energy into it is the rich set of interesting characters it packs in & a talented ensemble that brings those characters to life with finesse.The boxing sequences are brilliantly choreographed and do provide the necessary adrenaline high when it matters but this picture is more focused on the relationship between the two brothers and illustrates it amazingly well, for those moments do pack a powerful punch.
Russell's films of lately.Coming to the performances, the cast comprises of Mark Wahlberg, Amy Adams, Christian Bale & Melissa Leo, with Bale & Leo impressing the most.
It's not that the input by leading cast falls short in any aspect, it's just that Bale & Leo take their supporting characters to a different level, and the Academy Award they won for their respective works in this feature film is definitely an earned one.On an overall scale, The Fighter is no genre masterpiece but it still offers a sufficiently entertaining ride that will leave majority of its viewers satisfied in the end.
That tradition continues with "The Fighter", a film that delves into so many more themes than just the sweet science.For a basic plot summary, "The Fighter" tells the dual stories of brothers Mickey Ward (Mark Wahlberg) and Dickie Ecklund (Christian Bale).
Coming from a family of almost total dysfunction and seemingly headed for a life of manual labor, the boxing brothers each face their own inner demons as Mickey takes his "last shot" at pugilistic success.What really makes this a spectacular movie is the incredible complexity of the characters.
The Fighter is grounded in a very miserable reality, where poverty and crack-addiction is rife.Trained by his former-professional boxer half-brother Dickie (Christian Bale), Mickey is going from fight to fight making little money and usually getting his arse handed to him.
Russell's "The Fighter" follows the story of a young man who grew up adoring his older half brother Dicky (Christian Bale) the hyperactive drug addicted professional boxer who once knocked down Sugar Ray Leonard in '78.
His Life begins to change for the better when he begins to date Charlene (Amy Adams) a local barmaid popular with the men, who slowly opens his eyes that the problem with his life has been the influence of his family.After a potentially career ending incident involving his brother/mentor Dicky, our central character with the forceful help of Charlene avoids his family and begins to train seriously with a fresh team of supporting staff; his father (Jack McGee), long-time trainer played by the real life Mickey O'Keefe & a new manager Sal (Frank Renzulli).An extremely well re-created documentary of the original HBO feature titled "High on Crack Street: Lost Lives in Lowell" follows Dicky's long-time drug addiction to crack cocaine takes place during the film and is moving to watch.There's an enormous amount of pressure on any Boxing based drama in cinema.
In this case the protagonist is real-life boxer Mickey Ward (Mark Wahlberg) who has to overcome big odds - not the least of which is an extremely dysfunctional family headed up by his controlling mother Alice (Melissa Leo) and his drug addict brother Dicky (Christian Bale) who used to be a boxer and who's claim to fame was knocking down Sugar Ray Leonard (or did Sugar Ray slip?) and who now wants to live his dream through his brother.
I think one of the things that makes the fighter work so well is that it is not over ambitious, yes the movie is about a boxer but it is not about the sport itself, boxing is a supporting role to a story about family.
But I only have a character limit of 1000 words, besides the thing that makes the fighter so good is the performances from its exceptional cast.This is Mark Wahlbergs labour of love, the film he has been trying to make for years and he poured his heart and soul into his character Micky.
Amy Adams who plays Micky's girlfriend Charlene is also brilliant, she is as tough as Leo and provides a lot of the humour with her bad ass attitude and fierce loyalty for Micky.The fighter is without doubt one of the films of the year and maybe even the best boxing movie to come out of Hollywood.
Based on a true story, the film revolves around Mick's s relationship with his dysfunctional family that includes his half-brother Dickie Eklund (Christian Bale), an ex-fighter called "The Pride of Lowell" because he survived ten rounds with Sugar Ray Leonard, his overbearing trash-talking mother, Alice (Melissa Leo) and his repellent seven sisters who are little more than caricatures.
Christian Bale, Melissa Leo, and Amy Adams give such great performances that Wahlberg's character gets kind of lost in the midst of the story, but I don't think that's a negative critique for the film because it kind of summarizes the way his character has felt his entire life.
It also has a powerful screenplay and focuses on Ward's family as much as it does with his boxing career so it makes for a good balanced dramatic sports film.The movie takes place during the 90's in Lowell, Massachusetts and opens with an HBO interview of Dicky Ecklund (Christian Bale), a former boxer known as ¨the pride of Lowell¨ who once knocked down the great Sugar Ray Leonard.
The Fighter which is based on a true story of 'Irish' Micky Ward (Wahlberg) a boxer who came to notoriety in the late 80's after being trained by his older brother local legend Dickie Eklund (played superbly by Bale) who's claim to fame was a title fight with Sugar Ray Robinson.
The story is set in gritty working class Lowell, Massachusetts and depicts the tale of Micky Ward a could of been, almost has been boxer who is trying to break into the higher echelons of the boxing world with the help of his trainer and half brother Dickie Eklund and his mother and manager Alice Eklund (Melissa Leo).Unfortunately after his latest mismatch with a recently released prison inmate and a run in with the local law enforcement trying to save his brother from a beating at their hands Micky's right hand is broken and he is all set to give up on his dream.
Bale gave one of the great performances in modern film in his role as Dicky Ecklund, former contender for a world boxing title, and brother of "Irish" Micky Ward, the subject of this film's story.
Mark Wahlburg was quiet and competent as Ward, as he typically plays all of his roles, but the real acting kudos go to Bale, Melissa Leo as the mother of Ward and Ecklund and their seven blowsy sisters(!), and to Amy Adams as Ward's gorgeous but tough-as-nails, bartender girlfriend who supported and protected him against the specious love of his mother and brother who took every parasitic advantage of Ward to pursue their own wants at his expense.
Also fine are Ward's destructive family, including Melissa Leo as the totalitarian matriarch, who's followed in tow by a gaggle of her fiercely protective daughters, and Jack McGee as the working-class dad who seems consistently out of his element among all the aggressive estrogen."The Fighter" is a terrifically acted film, but its real strength comes from the way its characters drive the story.
Mark Wahlberg plays Dicky's still-fighting brother with unending restraint; he scores points for subtlety in the film's familial drama while losing as many in his charmless, unsmiling romance with Amy Adams's Charlene.
But overall, the movie is completely forgettable.Micky Ward (Wahlberg) is a small-time fighter from the mean streets of Lowell, Massachusetts; his older brother Dickie Eklund (Christian Bale) is a former pro who once knocked Sugar Ray Leonard down, so naturally the elder wants the younger to succeed.
The Fighter is full of intertextuality – from the font of the boxing matches' captions to the training routines – it's knowingly self-referential but also playing strictly by the rules, and that's why it works so well despite what could be easily dismissed as a cliché-laden script of another underdog narrative.The Fighter is based on the real life story of Mickey Ward (Mark Wahlberg), a taciturn and limited proletarian grafter very similar to Rocky Balboa (if the latter was Irish and not Italian), trained by his brother Dicky (Christian Bale) like Jake La Motta in Raging Bull.
Perhaps his biggest contribution to the film is his directing of the cast.The Fighter has a predictable plot yet it pulls out so much depth offered by the cast that we can say The Fighter is finely entertaining.OscarBuzz: Best Picture (with 10 nod this year, it will be nominated), Best Supporting Actor (Christian Bale, win), Best Supporting Actress (Mellisa Leo, Amy Adams, both have a good chance), Best Score, Best Cinematography.
Dicky knocked down Sugar Ray Leonard years ago, but now he is crack addict and the trainer of his young half-brother welterweight Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg), who is managed by their despotic mother Alice Ward (Melissa Leo) and is actually a brawler used to promote other fighters.After another defeat, due to the acceptance of Dicky and Alice of a fight against a stronger boxer weighing 10 kg more than he, the ashamed Micky meets the bartender and drop out college girl Charlene Fleming (Amy Adams) and she helps him to see that that his career will have no progress if Dicky and Alice continue to administrate it.
It is one of the best films of the year staring Mark Wahlberg (Nominated for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Drama) and Christian Bale (Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture Drama) as brothers Mickey Ward and Dicky Eklund who embark together on a boxing journey to become "The Pride of Lowell", Massachusetts.
Lets start by saying i'm not a fan of Mr Bale i find his real persona at times colours my feelings of his movie roles not the case with the fighter quite simply he deserves the Oscar for Supporting Role as does Amy Adams and Melissa Leo its a shame they cant both get it although there have been ties in the past.From the opening scenes taking the viewer through the HBO filming of Dickys comeback to the end titles its pure dramatic joy, the scenes of family life with the Ward / Eklunds are pure fly on the wall type viewing.
His big mouthed, former crackhead brother Dicky (Bale) is his trainer and his mother, played by the fabulous, well deserving Oscar winner Melissa Leo is his manager.Mickey is constantly babied and spoon-fed by his mother who feels that if someone isn't family they're not worth their time.
Russell ("Three Kings," "I Heart Huckabees") and acted by one of the best ensembles assembled for a movie this year.Mark Wahlberg plays Micky Ward, a young man from working-class Lowell, MA who rose from humble beginnings and a suffocatingly dysfunctional family to become a professional boxing champ.
And the performances were top notch some of the best I've seen in a long time especially the work of Bale, Adams, and Leo's stand out.If your not a boxing fan then you probably don't know the story of Mickey Ward the Lowell, Mass.
Russell really researched it well as this real life drama of rising stardom that's set near Beantown will leave you with a want to stand up cheering state of mind.Mark Wahlberg is Mickey Ward a local working stiff who struggles as a fighter as he's overshadowed by his older half brother a one time pride prize fighter named Dicky Eklund(brilliant and done in a believable way by Christian Bale).
Mark Wahlberg delivers what is probably the most understated and effective performance of his career, Christian Bale is astonishing as his crack-addicted brother who insists on perpetually reliving his own singular moment of boxing glory, Melissa Leo is amazingly detestable as their Medea of a mother, and Amy Adams—best known for playing meek, sweet, likable characters—displays impressive range as Micky's feisty supportive girlfriend who's battling some demons of her own.
Seeing Mark Wahlberg (Micky), Christian Bale (Dicky) and Amy Adams (Charlene) all in this movie immediately caught my eye and they all delivered in this rousing - yet somewhat expected - sports drama based on a true story.