Tanya Batson-Savage, Freelance Writer
Jim Braddock (Russell Crowe) speaks to his daughter, Rosemarie, (Ariel Waller). - CONTRIBUTED
IT TUGS at the heartstrings, pulls you in, may even break your heart and then helps to mend it again with a story of immense courage in the face of even greater odds. Though its background which plays out the boxing ring is one of great violence, it is a tender tale.
Directed by Ron Howard and starring Renée Zellweger and Russell Crowe, Cinderella Man features hard hitting talent both before and behind the camera and it pays off beautifully.
Written by Cliff Hollingsworth and Akiva Goldsman, the film was intended to be this year's Sea Biscuit. In this case the broken down horse has been replaced by a boxer who is not merely down on his luck, but also past his prime.
NOT A 'GIRLY MAN'
Despite the name, a Cinderella Man is not a 'girly man'. Crowe plays real life boxer James J. Braddock and so presents the second heart-wrenching boxing story in as many years.
Where Million Dollar Baby presented a tragedy, Cinderella Man is about inspiration. It is a classic story of the underdog overcoming adversity, in three rounds. In round one, the shortest of the three, Braddock is on his way up. Soon, however, the Great Depression will sink his fortunes and then the movie takes to his struggles as he and his family fight to make ends meet.
THE MOOD
The movie begins slowly and goes over the Braddock family's struggles with torturous slowness so that by two thirds of the way through the movie you are begging for release, in any form, as it is simply too sad.
The performances, as would be expected, are beautiful, textured and meaningful. Zellweger and Crowe create credible characters who easily demand our involvement in their struggles. However, given Zellweger's role in Cold Mountain and Chicago and Crowe's delivery in Gladiator and A Beautiful Mind, Cinderella Man does not contain breakthrough performance for either. It is simply not less than one would expect from them. Paul Giamatti, who after his breakthrough role in Sideways is on his way from being a 'that guy' to renowned actor in his own right, adds another creditable performance to his career as Joe Gould, Braddock's trainer.
The movie is also well crafted both from its directorial and editing stand point. It takes that X-ray photography technique which made its home in action movies to help to increase the emotive nature of the matches, allowing the viewer to get up-close contact with the bone crushing punches.
BOXING
Interestingly, though boxing is an important part of the flick, Cinderella Man is not really a sports story. Though it does take one into the ring and plays on the intensity with which fans can approach sports, it gives much more importance to the dramatic elements of the story, using boxing on a more symbolic level for overcoming great odds.
Boxing is a violent sport, defying common sense (as everybody knows it's not a good idea to be repeatedly hit in the head), however, Cinderella Man finds and explores the beauty and dignity that can occasionally be found in some of those involved in the sport. Cinderella Man is a story about facing adversity head on; rising from the ashes after being knocked down, and having the temerity to get up again, knowing full well that you could easily be knocked over once more.
