SOUTHPAW  3.2***     

           Let's start by saying what everyone may be thinking: "What else is new?" We have all seen this movie before. It follows the usual  Hollywood formula that has been used for years now.  We see a champion at the top of his game, he is later faced with tragedy and then he spends the rest of the film trying to repair his life and regain his title in one last do-or-die fight against an impressive opponent who has done him  wrong. It even includes a good old training montage overseen by an old one-time boxer now trainer.. Southpaw really does hit all the clichés of the genre so there is nothing cutting edge about the premise/story of Southpaw.

Where it defied expectations was in its performances and raw emotion. Everything that makes Southpaw good lies in the performance of the entire cast. Jake Gyllenhaal, in particular, simply could not have been more exceptional. His portrayal of loss, victory, sorrow, shame, anger, guilt, and love were unbearably believable, and made the movie an intensely dramatic work. This is a performance you simply should not pass up. Other notable performances: Forrest Whitaker as the trainer; Oona Laurence as his pre-teen daughter and Rachel Adams as his wife.

Being a boxing film some comment is due regarding  the boxing scenes.  Frankly they were superb and on the same level as “Raging Bull” and more realistic than “Rocky”. The filming of the fight scenes is very raw and it's clear that realism was important . There were some brilliant shots in one of the fights where the camera acted as a first person point of view from one of the boxers and the opponent fighter would punch at the camera while it ducked and swayed. It was executed with skill and was therefore effective at throwing the audience straight into the brutality of a boxing match.

I  enjoyed this movie. Yeah, yeah.. We all have seen at least upteen movies of a successful man losing everything that could ever possibly matter to him; however, the difference is that seldom have I experienced it more vividly than in Southpaw. BRAVO to Gyllenhaal again for making me feel things that most actors  continue to fail to do.

Clark

PS: The movie also features the final music score of the late James Horner ( Titanic; Braveheart; Avatar;  A Beautiful Mind); who worked for free, and the film is dedicated to him. The soundtrack also features multiple songs by Eminem, who was originally set to star in the movie (reprising his role from '8 MILE').  

Also note below the results of Jake spending 6 months to get in shape to portray a boxer !!!!!!!