Cinderella Man

Forget Rocky and Raging Bull. Forget Seabiscuit and Million Dollar Baby. Forget even the old Tamil flick with Prabhu in the lead whose name I have already forgotten. For if you don't, you might just not enjoy Cinderella Man, the latest inspirational movie directed by Ron Howard. The movie is a biopic on the 1920-30's boxer James J. Braddock, and has elements liberally sprinkled that might just want you to compare it with those other movies where the hero is a washed-up has-been, who holds firm to his principles and family and, just when everyone has forgotten him, pushes himself to the top against all odds and the best of the next generation.

Russell Crowe stars as the boxer, legendary for his right hook, and Renee Zellwegger is the typical homemaker of the 30's, quiet, loving, the mother of 3 kids and fearing for her husband's health in the ring. The movie starts off in 1928 with Braddock KOing his opponent and carrying a hefty wad of greenbills to his pretty wife. But disaster strikes soon and he is left with injuries to his right hand and heavy losses in failed speculations as the Depression rolls in. In 1933, we see him struggling to get work at the docks, and soon his boxing license revoked by the local commission chief Johnston, played well by Bruce Mcgill.

The times are harsh and the family finds it hard to get food and milk on the table. Electricity is lost to mounting unpaid arrears and Braddock finds himself all 'prayed up' as God seems to punch him hard and fast where it hurts. He is forced to apply for assistance from the government and even begs from his boxing associates but manages to keep his family together.

Here, luck favours him as his old manager Joe Gould(Paul Giamatti of Sideways fame) finds a bout that nobody is ready to take on at short notice and the Commission agrees for a single bout comeback. Everyone is agreed that he is in the ring to lose but, in spite of being starved and injured, he manages to KO Corn Griffin, and becomes an instant sensation. Joe persuades Johnston to let him take on the challengers for the heavyweight title and goes to the extent of selling off the last of his possessions to let Braddock practise. The gamble pays off and Braddock keeps winning and gets to fight Max Baer(Craig Bierko), a bear of a man, who has already killed 2 people in the ring, for the title. Baer is flamboyant and promises to kill him but our man holds his cool, and egged on by the millions down on their luck, who find a reason to cheer for one of their kind and to whom he is the 'Cinderella Man,' the living fairy tale, he manages to hold his own against Baer through fifteen gruelling rounds to emerge champion.

The movie is well-directed and though we know what to expect, there are a few surprises even in the real story. Paddy Considine, as Braddock's friend from the docks, who dies trying to organize and unionize Hooverville, manages to impress with a neat portrayal. As the manager, Paul Giamatti is impressive with his snappy comebacks that irritate Johnston and the scene where he lets Renee Zellwegger into his barely furnished apartment and explains his situation is great. And the church scene where Renee walks in and finds it filled with people praying for her husband and waiting for the live commentary to begin on the radio is amusing and touching.

The actors have done their job well and Russell Crowe must find it easy by now to do heroes who are quiet and manage to 'do the thing.' Renee Zellwegger plays the role of a loving wife who has to support her husband through a crisis, waiting patiently for her man to get them out of all the mess around her. The supporting cast too have played their parts and Bierko as Baer and McGill as Johnston are especially convincing in their roles.

The script is well-written and the direction and cinematography is superb. The boxing scenes are gory but manage to get you to the seat's edge as the boxers sway and hook and dance and jab through their bouts. The director manages to explore all the 'senti' he can but stops short of making it all mushy. The dialogues are crisp and the editing reminds one of 'The Gladiator' in parts as flashbacks and imagined sequences sometimes crowd Braddock's thoughts.

Overall, a nice movie to watch and inspirational too, if you go for that kind of fare. But, simply for the acting and the director's sticking to the real-life plot, its interesting. And, as the CNN reviewer points out, its a movie that symbolizes the 1930's when America had to pull itself up from a deep trench, and also for the current world where heroes who fight hard and honest are in short supply.