The Fighter

The Fighter
2010
Directed by: David O. Russell
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale

Reminding me of the 2008 Oscar race, the best supporting actor award should be a no-brainer. After Heath Ledger's film changing role as the Joker in The Dark Knight, there has been seemingly no clear cut solution to the winner of an award. Until now. Christian Bale (who ironically is the star of the Dark Knight) portrays the crack addicted brother of boxer Micky Ward (Wahlberg). Bale's willingness to let go of all he knows to find a soul in this character brings about the essence of true acting at its finest.

Bale's performance is greatly challenged by those of Amy Adams, Melissa Leo, and Mark Wahlberg himself. Adams plays Wahlberg's bartender girlfriend trying to get him onto the right track for a successful boxing career. Leo is Wahlberg's mother/manager in the film. She's relentless and thinks she only wants best for her son. However, Bale steals the show as Micky's former boxing hero brother and trainer, who is now addicted to crack and very unreliable.

The film follows the struggle of not only Ward's dwindling boxing career, but the family aspect of having your mother for a manager and too many sisters to count. The strong family values bring themselves too much into the story to make Wahlberg's character go crazy. This, in turn, causes him to lose focus on his career.

When his brother gets arrested, Ward hires a new trainer and manager to jumpstart his career again. The family fights ensue arguing over what is best for Micky. Working together and against each other at the same time, Ward's family pushes him to the breaking point to where he seems to want to quit. However, with the release of his brother and the support of his girlfriend, Ward makes a comeback and even is given his chance at a title shot.

The superb acting and directing capabilities are brought to this film in such a heart warming way. Boxing movies never had much appeal to me, but this one was not just about the boxing. It was about the struggle between family, friends, and what we think is right. The film is an instant classic sports movie, along with Hoosiers and Rudy. The fight for our lives is in our soul and our families. To fight we must work together. To win a fight, we must work well together.

Stars (out of 10): 8