Rating: PG13
Genre:
Drama
Theatrical Release: 06/03/2005(USA)
Release Date: 12/06/2005
SubTitles: English/French/Espanol
Dubbed: English/French
Sound: DD5.1
Run Time: 145 Minutes
Flags: Violence, Adult Situations, Adult Language, Suitable for Teens
Distributor/Studio: Universal Studios
The true story of an athlete who achieved his greatest success against the most daunting odds of his life is brought to the screen in this
historical drama. In the 1920s,
James Braddock (
Russell Crowe) from Bergen, NJ, was a promising contender in professional boxing; he had strength, spirit, and tenacity, but the combination of a serious hand injury and a 1929 defeat in a bout with light heavyweight champ
Tommy Loughran sent his career into a serious tailspin. As
Braddock's career in the ring dried up, the Great Depression put a stake through the heart of America's economy, and
Braddock found himself working at the New York docks for pitiful wages as he tried to support his wife,
Mae (
Renée Zellweger), and three children. Desperate for money,
Braddock turned to his former trainer and manager
Joe Gould (
Paul Giamatti), who was unexpectedly able to scare up a bout for him, battling
John Griffin at
Madison Square Garden. While conventional wisdom had it that
Braddock was too old, out of shape, and out of practice to have any chance of winning, he defeated
Griffin, and continued beating his opponents with a powerful left hook that had been intensified by years of punishing dock work. In a nation desperate for good news,
Braddock's surprising comeback became a tonic to struggling workers and unemployed people, and all eyes were on
Braddock when in 1935 he took on powerful heavyweight champion
Max Baer (
Craig Bierko) in what was both literally and figuratively the fight of his life.
~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide