"Cinderella Man"
Movie Review
by Kevin Carr
| **** (out of 5 stars) STARRING Russell Crowe as JIM BRADDOCK Renee Zellweger as MAE BRADDOCK Paul Giamatti as JOE GOULD Craig Bierko as MAX BAER Paddy Considine as MIKE WILSON Bruce McGill as JIMMY JOHNSTON Rated PG-13 Opens June 3, 2005 Studio: Universal Directed by: Ron Howard Back to Movie Review Home Read more of Eric's reviews at www.permierereviews.com. |
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‘Cinderella Man’ A Sleeping Beauty
With the year almost at its midpoint, dramas have been suspiciously absent from the box office. The few we’ve had have been mostly relegated to Hollywood’s underground; the limited release engagement or relatively anonymous independent film. This once dominant genre has, this year in particular, been overrun by a torrent of horror movies and comedies, few of which have actually excited audiences, as this year’s abysmal box office numbers demonstrates. However, in Ron Howard’s new movie, Cinderella Man, a pristine drama has finally found its way back to the mainstream, and even takes its place as one of this year’s most legitimate reasons to visit a theater.
Cinderella Man chronicles the most turbulent years of James Braddock, the legendary boxer of the 1930’s. A one-dimensional but nevertheless phenomenal fighter, Braddock’s career was all but destroyed by nagging injuries and the tribulations of the Great Depression. Given a one-time shot against a top contender, he stunned the boxing world, rocketing once again to stardom and becoming a symbol of inspiration for the downtrodden masses.
Cinderella Man is surprising in that as a boxing film it moves far beyond the expected
cliché’s of vainglorious fighters, filthy promoters, and rampant greed. Its poignancy results from an examination of the human condition, its ability to thrive in times of extraordinary difficulty or become overwhelmed by desperation. In many ways, the film stands as a mesmerizing essay of life in one of our history’s most grief-stricken periods.
Howard’s directing style is hypnotic and engaging, lending the film an increasingly exciting emotional gravity. Scenes involving Braddock’s self-sacrificial nature, Mae’s support at critical times, and other surprises bring to Cinderella Man a heart-rending force that can leave the viewer overcome by its dramatic surges. Although simplistic in its delivery the mood of the film is nothing less than magical.
Inside the ring, the film offers some of the best boxing segments you’ll see on a big screen. These harken back to a time when a lopsided fight more closely resembled a brutal assault, a time when the sport may have teetered on barbarism but still had a soul. Unlike the all-or-nothing momentum swings in films like Rocky and Million Dollar Baby, the fight depictions are delightfully realistic. The natural give-and-take of real boxing matches is always apparent, giving the viewer a sense of unpredictability and utter excitement. Howard’s excellent shooting style not only overcomes some of Crowe’s weaknesses as an actor masquerading as a boxer, but creates for the viewer a strong sense of the intimidation that can occur inside the ring.
Award winners Russell Crowe, who plays Braddock, and Renee Zellweger, who plays his wife Mae, come together to form a romantic chemistry that is remarkably natural and free-flowing. The relationship between their characters is an absorbing odyssey of love, working itself out in a series of tender and warmly passionate highs and lows.
Supporting performances show similar strength. Paul Giamatti (Sideways) is particularly enjoyable as Braddock’s loyal and loveable trainer, Joe Gould. Bruce McGill (Collateral), who has practically standardized the tough-talking boss character, is again effective as the promoter Jimmy Johnston. Craig Bierko (The Thirteenth Floor) also turns in convincing performance as Max Baer, the carousing heavyweight whose right hand was itself a passageway to heaven or hell.
In the midst of the summer movie melee, Cinderella Man is like a sleeping beauty. It is a powerfully entertaining piece that comes without the blubber of most pictures at this time of year. It’s a film that, I must confess, left me teary-eyed with inspiration, and most of all, appreciative of everyone and everything in life.
