On Christmas, especially after copious amounts of food and drink, I am not in
the mood for complicated artworks. I am, as you know, a particular fan of films
that get the proverbial “little grey cells” whirring, but not today. This is
why cheesy Christmas classics came into being. I am not talking about one of
those however. I am talking about an emotional story of impossible odds being
surmounted by sheer courage, determination and hard work. And I’ll tell you
something else, it’s a true story to boot. I give you, James J. Braddock.
James J.
Braddock (Russel Crowe) was a boxer in the mid to late ‘20s. He was a rising
star, set to do great things. He lived with his wife Me (Rennee Zellwegger) and
three children in relative comfort, luxury and happiness until… The Great
Depression. Like many people in the States, Braddock loses everything. He has
to beg for shifts on the docks for any sort of hope of getting some income to
feed his family. They now live in a shack in a shantytown, barely able (and not
always that) to pay for their most basic needs. His dreams of fame and fortune
seem like a flicker at an incredible distance until his ex-manager and very old
friend manages to get him one last fight. Braddock hasn’t fought in years, he
is a lot older besides, no one gives him much of a chance… Until he actually
wins the fight. This is the beginning of a renaissance, as it were. Although,
it seems positively unbelievable. Because this one-time champion, now dock
worker, has actually got his sights set on being the world heavyweight
champion. Is he out of his mind? Or is there an actual chance he could make it?
Admit it.
Realism, storylines etc. aside, we all love it when the good guys get the prize
in the end. We all love it when the underdog wins through impossible odds.
Especially in a matter like boxing. I mean, yes, it is violent and everything
but there is something deeply satisfying about our kind hearted hero beating
the evil bad-guy to a bloody pulp with his bare hands (Come on, admit it). And
of course there is a delicious bad guy; one Max Baer who was infamous for actually
killing people in the boxing ring. To be fair on the man, as he was actually a
real person, he was probably just a boxer who was doing his job and getting on
with his PR but still. He suits the purposes of this film very, very well. And
ironically (or not) he happens to be the person Braddock needs to fight to win
the world title… In short, as you can imagine, the whole atmos of the film is
very suitable for too much turkey, indigestion and large amounts of wrapping
paper.
And, to be
fair, even if you know how the story ends (to be honest, a – You can probably
guess from my review how it ends and b – You can Google it and find it out in a
heartbeat- I did haha) it detracts nothing from the emotion of the film. I
watched with baited breath, I bounced up and down, I actually ran round the
room yelling instructions at one point. You can’t help but admire the man. And
enjoy the film. Despite all of its conventionality, it has undoubtedly made my
top 10.
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