Undisputed

Plot synopsis:
Undisputed heavyweight boxing champion George "Iceman" Chambers (Rhames) is convicted of rape and sentenced to a new prison in the desert, called Sweetwater. The high-security facility is populated by hardened criminals. Unaware of the prison's ways and its unique hierarchy, the pompous and bratty Chambers tries to impress upon the inmates his status as a champion boxer.
The prison camp, within its own walls, has a riveting competition on which a betting syndicate thrives. Criminals fight in boxing matches with very lax rules, thus making it a very addictive and lucrative venture for the syndicate while their conscience is kept at bay. The most popular boxer behind bars is Sweetwater's undefeated Monroe Hutchens (Snipes), who ends up in solitary confinement after Chambers picks a fight with him in the mess hall.
Sensing the brewing hatred for the heavyweight champion, an incarcerated mob boss named Ripstein (Falk) senses potential in a match between the modest Hutchens and the egomaniacal Chambers. Ripstein, a lifelong boxing fan, proposes a match and the warden (Arndt) is persuaded to look the other way.
As all the arrangements are finally organized, an eagerly awaited fight night arrives. All hell breaks loose with the haughty professional champ going all out against the unputdownable prison warrior. Chambers knocks down Hutchens twice (and with the 'London Prize' format, each knockdown counts as the end of a round, as the boxer is given only 60 seconds to get up.) In the third round, Hutchens charges back and knocks Chambers down for the first time in his career, sending the crowd of prisoners into a frenzy. Finally, in the fourth round Hutchens officially KO's Chambers to become the undisputed champion.
Ripstein's Mexican assistant reveals in a voice over that Ripstein died three weeks after the fight, but in his will, he left him $2,000,000. Chambers was released on parole, and Hutchens received the money for his sister, who was experiencing hardship on the outside.
It is also revealed that Chambers and his manager denied that the fight with Hutchens ever occurred, and that it was all a rumor. Months later, Chambers wins back the Heavyweight Championship of the World. The whole cell block watches the televised fight, and laugh and cheer Monroe's name after hearing Chambers being crowned the 'undisputed' heavyweight champion of the world.

Tags: cult, humor, murder, violence, flashback

Review:
It's a fight movie set in Sweetwater Prison in the Mohavje Desert, starring tough guys Wesley Snipes and Ving Rhames.
What distinguishes this guy's movie are a couple things: the expert and lean direction of Hill, the crisp and intelligent script by David Giler and Hill, and one of the best boxing fight scenes ever done in the movies.Ving Rhames plays former undisputed Heavyweight Champion James "Ice Man" Chambers, convicted of rape and stripped of his title and sentenced to serve his time in Sweetwater.
Walter Hill is the Man."Undisputed" is a no nonsense boxing movie that entertains and makes us think.
Seems like an eternity since director Walter Hill ("48 HRS.", "Streets of Fire", "Southern Comfort") made a really good movie and his latest offering "Undisputed" shows that Hill still has the skill to create a clever movie."Undisputed" is the second movie about boxing that Hill has done, the first being his feature debut "Hard Times" that starred Charles Bronson and the late James Coburn in the mid-seventies.The tale takes place at an isolated Arizona maximum security prison where a former heavyweight boxing champ (Rhames) is sent to serve a sentence for rape meets a counterpart (Snipes) who is an undefeated champ in the prison ranks and the opportunity to have the two fighters face each other in a bout arranged by a former mobster (Peter Falk) who still has mob connections outside the prison and a devoted fan of the sport.And the result is a sharp and hard-hitting boxing drama with the fight being the center piece.
Snipes and Rhames are terrific here and the supporting performances are just as good especially Michael Rooker, Wes Studi, and Falk, too."Undisputed" may not top "Rocky" or "Raging Bull" in being the best movie about the sport, but it deserves some mention..
As his expensive legal team prepare an appeal and defend all sorts of other actions, elderly mobster Mendy Ripstein starts pulling the strings to put on the only fight anyone wants to see  Monroe v Iceman.Starting with a solid 15 minutes of style and energy I wondering if the film would be able to keep the pace up but, despite turning it down a little bit, the film does essentially keep moving with energy and style right till the very end.
UNDISPUTED (2002) **1/2 Wesley Snipes, Ving Rhames, Peter Falk, Michael Rooker, Fisher Stevens, Jon Seda,  Wes Studi, Denis Arndt, Ed Lover.
Hard-hitting yet formulaic boxing-in-prison flick with professional pugilist and heavyweight world champ Rhames facing off with the maximum security's current in-stir (and undefeated) competitor Snipes (both in amazing physical shape and displaying enough testosterone for two flicks).
The plot is a straight forward one that doesn't call for much ingenuity on the viewers behalf, we can reasonably expect competent acting and choreography in what is basically an unofficial biopic of Mike Tyson's conviction for rape and his subsequent time in prison.Instead of putting heart to the story the makers have simply plonked two big name black actors in a prison setting with one having a bigger mouth and ego than the other, and all this leading to a big punch up to decide who is the rugged and toughest man on the planet !.
Throw away interview scenes of the woman raped by our main protagonist don't garner sympathy or merit because they are so misplaced and badly acted they seem like an edited after thought.Poor film and in one scene where Michael Rooker looks bemused at the fight between Ving Rhames & Wesley Snipes.......it says it all, it's embarrassing so don't be fooled by the talent appearing in the movie, they are all wasted and deserve better, hell we all do, 2/10..
I'm not usually a Wesley Snipes fan but here his zen-like demeanor is put to good use as the underdog in a match between the world champeen and the local hero in a maximum security prison.
Just feels like some old pros f***ing around with a genre film, having a good time, and the thing is quite fun so long as you're comfortable with some updated cinematic cliches, a weird Peter Falk and you're not the type who always needs a message in their cinema.
STAR RATING:*****Unmissable****Very Good***Okay**You Could Go Out For A Meal Instead*Avoid At All CostsThe reliably dreary Walter Hill churns out yet another slow-moving,action lacking yarn.The story is an incoherent,structureless bore concerning the impending showdown between Sweatwater Prison's reigning boxing champ (Wesley Snipes) and the rough,heavy new arrival (Ving Rhames).Performance wise,Rhames is quite impressive as a volatile,easily provoked big-brooding thug who makes Mike Tyson look like a pussycat in comparison,but Snipes is wasted as a more reserved,Lennox Lewis-alike who practises oragami in his spare time.And sadly,for an actor who can usually be relied upon to deliver the dramatic goods,for some reason here he seems really disinterested in his role,not bothering to flex any emotion or sense of involvement whatsoever.In fact,the whole thing seems to have been weirdly inspired by the year's big Lewis/Tyson showdown event.Oh well,the real thing always is more exciting isn't it?**.
What is even more disappointing is the fact that the talented Walter Hill is involved.Wesley Snipes' acting is bad (no change there), Ving Rhames walks around punching anything that moves.
There are better prison/boxing movies out there and 'Undisputable' is not one of them.Also why didn't Mike Tyson sue the studio for obviously ripping off his life story!
I don't know.Don't waste your time on this drivel, instead rent out a good boxing movie such as The Hurricane, Raging Bull or even Rocky.Avoid the "Undisputed" chump of the movie world 0 out 5PS: how does Wesley Snipes get away with making stinking movies?.
The final fight (which is I think no spoiler since every boxing movie ends with a big match) was thrilling, you wouldn't know until the end who was actually going to win (which is rather unrealistic but also inevitable for a movie that considers itself as "action" and also wants to entertain the audience.
And again: A good idea: A boxing movie where both fighters are illuminated, the audience learns to know them both and both have the same screen time.
That was a pity since you could notice that this was no rushed movie, there was a good concept and a good (though rather short-an action)plot and great names : Ving Rhames and Wesley Snipes-It's worth watching the movie just to see them on screen together.
It is the story of the Heavyweight Champion of the World, George 'Iceman' Chambers (Ving Rhames) who has been arrested, convicted and sentenced to prison.
There are some great actors in this trash: Wesley Snipes, Ving Rhames, Peter Falk, and Michael Rooker.
Wesley Snipes hasn't had a hit film in years, and one hopes that the soon to be released Blade 3 will wash the bad taste of Undisputed out of his fans mouthes.AVOID at all costs...Unless you wish to see Columbo spit forth about fifty expletives in as many seconds..
The plot obviously is based on a parallel universe where Mike Tyson got into lots of fights while in prison and in which there are plenty of underground jail boxing matches.Most action oriented movies lack some degree of originality which is forgivable under certain circumstances.
This is a pretty boring jail-boxing-flick (yah, what a word!) that features very little story, uninteresting main characters and a concept that focuses purely on the boxing aspects and forgets basically everything else.There is one big problem with this movie; it's two main characters played by Wesley Snipes and Ving Rhames.
My guess is that it was the movie its intension to make the Snipes character the more likable one but he's portrayed in an incredible unsympathetic way and quite honestly I would always rather hang out with Ving Rhames than with Wesley Snipes, no matter what crime he committed.
The movie features of course other characters, of which some got portrayed by some good and well known actors (Peter Falk, Michael Rooker) but you just don't ever care about any of them and most also feel rather pointless within the movie.So yes, the main characters are a problem but so is its story.
A little too convenient in some parts but as a whole this movie delivers a solid punch.Ving Rhames is the former undisputed Heavyweight Champion James "Iceman" Chambers, convicted of rape, stripped of his title and sentenced to serve his time in Sweetwater Prison.
(Does that sound familiar?)  Monroe Hutchens (Wesley Snipes), a former ranked boxer who lost his temper and beat his lady's boyfriend to death 10 years ago, is the unbeaten champion of the maximum security prison in the Mojave Desert to which the Iceman is assigned to serve his sentence - or at least until his expensive lawyers can get him out.
Meanwhile, Mendy Ripstein (Peter Falk), an aficionado of the sweet science and old-time mobster who because of his wife's allergies left Florida - where they know who's who - for California - where they don't - and fell afoul of the tax authorities, plots to make a killing betting on the fight.You can guess who wins, but that's hardly the point.
Wesley Snipes, Ving Rhames and Peter Falk have done better movies with a lot more punch.
(Just goes to show that IMDb reviewers are not infallible, yours truly included.) This was a kind of David and Goliath movie behind bars: This big arrogant heavyweight champion gets sent to prison for rape (Sound familiar?).
Cussing, boxing, prison, and two incredibly gifted and talented actors - Wesley Snipes and Ving Rhames.Let the testosterone roll!.
Even with stars such as Wesley Snipes and Ving Rhames this 2002 action set drama inside a California prison doesn't hold much in entertainment value.
Undisputed (2002) *** (out of 4)Heavyweight champion George 'Iceman' Chambers (Ving Rhames) is convicted of a rape he says never happened and is sent to prison in the prime of his life.
Inside the prison is a boxing ring where Monroe Hutchen (Wesley Snipes) is the champ.
It doesn't take long until mob boss Mendy (Peter Falk) talks the men into a battle between the undisputed champs.For some reason, UNDISPUTED turned out to be yet another box office disappointment for director Walter Hill, which is really too bad because this here is a rather fun movie for what it is.
There is Ving Rhames, a character obviously based on Mike Tyson, who is the world heavyweight champion but has been sentenced to the prison under accusation of rape.
While Wesley Snipes is clearly a fantastic boxer with stupendous on-screen technical skill, the limitations of simple boxing may end up boring some of the more discriminating fight fans in the audience.
Ving Rhames matches him in intensity as current champ sent up for rape (film takes delicious joy in accuratley portraying seedy sickliness of modern fight game.) Both of thest big boys surrender main acting kudos to old pro Peter Falk who does some of his wiliest work ever as crumbling wiseguy out to make one last killing before he fades away.
Undisputed is a movie for all of those Rocky Balboa fans that know who is gonna win in the end since the trailers show you the whole story, Snipes is in good shape due to the BLADE movies and Rhames is strong as an ox (as always), so the final showdown happens and you really dont feel excited by watching this because youve seen the best of this movie on the trailer already, This movie is just a sorry excuse to get money the easy way: GET CRAZY BOXING FANS AND THROW IN 2 BIG RIPPED BLACK GUYS AND LET THEM KILL EACH OTHER formula.
Good movie, Ving Rhames plays a great Champ..
In a movie that could well have taken place in real life, with Rhames playing the part of Mike Tyson, we see Ving Rhames enter California's SweetWater prison having been convicted of rape.
As far as I am concerned the whole script comes across as if it were ad-libbed inside of a week and you can almost see the 'am I making a big mistake ' feeling running through Wesley and Ving's minds as they play out their parts.The frustrating thing is this could have worked, but instead it feels as though the whole thing has been put together like some overdue school assignment.It try's its best to avoid being predictable, but there is never any doubt who the winner is going to be.Half way through the film you think to yourself, 'surely its worth staying to the end just to watch the 'inevitable' battle of the Titans', but believe me you will find yourself feeling cheated way before the end credits begin to roll.Finally, surely Ratbag Dolan (Fisher Stevens) in my book has to be a contender for the most exasperating actor/ character of all time, this guy grates on you throughout the whole film and no matter how hard he tries cannot portray nor even slightly resemble that of someone having spent time in a correctional facility.
Ving Rhames and Wesley Snipes costar in UNDISPUTED, as two convicts who end up in the boxing ring together.
Not a bad boxing movie, but to me, the real star was Ving Rhames.
Always liked boxing and enjoyed the great role that Wesley Snipes, (Monroe Hutchens), "Chaos",'05, portrayed as a ten year inmate who in prison was an undefeated champion boxer and was the pride and joy of all the inmates.
"Undisputed" is a slick flick about a world champ boxer (Rhames), an obvious Tyson knock-off, and a prison champion boxer (Snipes) who get together to find out who can kick whose butt is the slammer.
A prison drama mixed with ROCKY is the basic premise of this unusual but entertaining little movie, brought to us by Walter Hill, a director with a track record of making "man's man" type films.
Of the pair, Ving Rhames bags the larger-than-life character, a man who turns out to be little more than a glorified thug; Wesley Snipes gets to be solemn and proud, a real departure from his usual tough guy routines, and he makes the film.
Convicted of rape, world heavyweight boxing champion Ving Rhames (as George "Iceman" Chambers) is stripped of his title and sent to prison.
Flashbacks show Mr. Snipes' victim was enjoying the company of another man.*** Undisputed (5/31/02) Walter Hill ~ Ving Rhames, Wesley Snipes, Peter Falk, Jon Seda.
Although there really isn't a reason to care for the two main characters played by Wesley Snipes and Ving Rhames.
The movie pales next to the great bare knuckles fight film "Hard Times", because the story simply isn't engaging enough.
With great fight choreography, a decent supporting cast, & better than average performance by Ving Rhames makes "Undisputed" a step ahead of boxing flicks like "Gladiator" & "Rocky V".In Sweetwater Prison, inmate Monroe Hutchens(Snipes) is the reigning "undisputed" heavyweight champion.
Only the witnesses of the prison fight as well as Hutchens & Chambers know who is the real "undisputed" champion.Rhames' performance stole some limelight away from Snipes whose role was somewhat understated.
Walter Hill gives us a fairly entertaining boxing/prison movie with Undisputed.
The sub-plots involving Wesley Snipes and Ving Rhames' characters highlight just how unfortunate circumstances have sent them both to prison.
This film asks the question "What if, when Mike Tyson was in prison, he fought the prison's boxing champ..."The result is a delightful movie, with lots of my favorite actors: Wesley Snipes, Ving Rhames, Wes Studi, etc.
With a solid cast that includes the likes of Fisher Stevens, Peter Falk and Wes Studi to complement Wesley Snipes and Ving Rhames, the story proves respect could be just as important as money and greed.
Good boxing film and Walter's Hill best in a long time.
This film has  Ving Rhames as a Mike Tyson type heaveweight champ who is sent to jail and winds up in a prison boxing match with former contender Wesley Snipes.
However, this movie is pretty darn good in most areas.The story involves two main characters, Snipes, who is a convicted murderer and undefeated Champ of Sweetwater Prison.
Ving Rhames is the former heavyweight champion of the world who goes to jail on a conviction of rape and there he butts heads with the undisputed heavyweight champion of the prison played by Wesley Snipes.
Nobody's expecting high-drama, here, and Wesley Snipes and Ving Rhames are both my boys, but this pitiful fight movie had about as much content as a 30-minute HBO special.
Iceman Chambers (Ving Rhames) is a heavyweight boxer that goes to prison for sexually assaulting a woman (very Tyson like).
Wesley Snipes shows once again that he is the greatest action star in film history as he plays a prison boxing champ who's matched against Iceman Chambers (Ving Rhames) just sent to prison for rape.
The Iceman (Ving Rhames) Is Stripped Of His Heavy Weight Title And Sent To Prison For Rape, Where He Runs Into the Prison Champion (Wesley Snipes) ...
Directed By Walter Hill (The Warriors) This Is A Great Movie For Fans Of Snipes, Rhames, Falk, Michael Rooker, Jon Seda, Fisher Stevens, Wes Studi And More Or Just Fight Fans In General ...
Figuring it will be a good way to make money fellow convict Emmanuel 'Mendy' Ripstein (Peter Falk) sets up a prison boxing match between the two men to decide who is the real UNDISPUTED champ.
And now the two will go at it to find out whose greater, the prison champ or the world champ?The concept sounds vaguely familiar with another boxer....Mike something........The film explores the prison life style and the harsh brutality one is faced with while in the company of criminals and violent offenders; I found however the stereotypes very annoying, the Godfather of the prison....I think the character of Ving Rhames and Wesley Snipes should have been changed.....All in a all an average boxing movie....
There he takes on the boxing champ, Monroe, of the prison played by Wesley Snipes.