Post by RYTCHZ MAGIC on Oct 28, 2005 17:47:34 GMT 9
(US, 2005, d. Ron Howard)
Cinderella Man is advertised as a boxing film, but it is much more than that. It is a film about the Depression. It is also the story of a good man who has a second chance at success in his life and becomes a hero and role model for people who suffered in the United States during the 1930s.
The star is Russell Crowe. Despite the news about his real life tantrums, he shows himself once again to be an actor who can completely immerse himself in his role. He has made only six films in the last seven years, five of them Oscar-nominated, winning for Gladiator. Looking back at them, we can see that he has chosen roles which show the nobility of the human spirit and heroism. He was the older whistleblower exposing the tobacco industry in The Insider, mathematician John Nash in A Beautiful Mind and a principled captain of a ship in Master and Commander.
Here, Crowe is an everyman character. There is a frequently quoted line from Marlon Brando in On the Waterfront about his frustrated boxing career: ‘I could have been a contender’. Crowe portrays a contender from the waterfront.
He is James J.Braddock, a successful boxer at the end of the 1920s. He is happily married with three children. He is a Catholic, though when he experiences hardships during the Depression, he tells his devout wife he is ‘all prayed out’. There is a nice touch at the end when he faces his tough bout against world heavyweight champion, Max Baer. His friends and supporters from his New Jersey neighbourhood gather in the local church and the parish priest sets up the radio there for everyone to listen in.
Braddock was not a wealthy man but he lost his stocks and shares in the Wall St crash of 1929. This reduced his family to living hand to mouth while he tried to get work on the docks. An occasional fight brought some income, but the film shows just how hard it was for families to survive day by day with little food, light and gas bills overdue and no credit at the local shops.
His victory in a demonstration fight that he was not expected to win led to further success and the chance to fight for the title. If you do not know whether Braddock actually won or not means a very suspenseful climax to the film, audiences identifying with him against the clownish and brutal Baer and with his wife listening anxiously.
Renee Zellwegger is a versatile actress. While she appears as the supportive wife, she brings strength and conviction to her role. Paul Giamatti (so good in Sideways) steals his scenes as Braddock’s coach and agent.
Boxing is not everyone’s sport and some of the fight sequences may be a bit graphic for everyone’s taste. However, it is the spirit of Braddock, whom writer Damon Runyon dubbed ‘Cinderella Man’ because of his rise from poverty at a later time in his life, that carries us through the film.
Two years ago, the racing film Seabiscuit, was popular viewing. This was another Depression hero, a horse which was not expected to win races but who, after severe injury, got back the strength to win. This is the spirit of the battler and Seabiscuit encouraged people at a time of struggle. Cinderella Man shows us how well the public respond to a good man who overcomes difficulties, who is willing to try even though he may not win. Braddock was this kind of hero. The film also shows us that he was a man of principle and integrity.