Un ex cronista deportivo es contratado por un turbio promotor de peleas para promover su último hallazgo, una desconocida estrella en ascenso de Argentina pero fácilmente explotable.Un ex cronista deportivo es contratado por un turbio promotor de peleas para promover su último hallazgo, una desconocida estrella en ascenso de Argentina pero fácilmente explotable.Un ex cronista deportivo es contratado por un turbio promotor de peleas para promover su último hallazgo, una desconocida estrella en ascenso de Argentina pero fácilmente explotable.
- Dirección
- Guionistas
- Elenco
- Nominado a 1 premio Óscar
- 2 nominaciones en total
- Luís Agrandi
- (as Carlos Montalban)
- Fighter
- (sin créditos)
- Oklahoma City Ring Announcer
- (sin créditos)
- Boxing fan at Dundee fight
- (sin créditos)
- Dirección
- Guionistas
- Todo el elenco y el equipo
- Producción, taquilla y más en IMDbPro
Opiniones destacadas
This was sadly to be the last film from the great Humphrey Bogart. He would pass away the following year, but thankfully this Mark Robson directed piece proves to be a fitting swansong. He puts depth to his portrayal of Willis and his face off scenes with Rod Steiger's Benko are a real acting joy to observe. The film itself {great scripting from Phillip Yordan} is a scathing and critical look at the boxing circuit, corruption, greed and a scant care for human life come bubbling to the surface, with Burnett Guffey's stark black & white photography adding grime to the nasty underbelly. Real life {and one time heavyweight champion of the world} boxer Primo Carnera sued {and lost} Columbia because The Harder They Fall's story was close enough to his own life story, that in itself makes this film's core story all the more interesting. 8/10
It's Humphrey Bogart's last movie so it's always a little hard to watch. But it is a great one. Rod Steiger always does such a wonderful job. It seems to me when he's trying to explain why he's doing corrupt things he has this underlying tone of saying "Why are you so upset that I'm taking advantage of you?!" Which makes his character even more despicable. It's also interesting to compare Steiger's and Bogart's style of acting since they came from two different schools.
In addition to Bogart's fantastic performance, Rod Steiger chews the scenery nicely as a corrupt manager. Their scenes together are really well done, and very well written. I particularly enjoyed the scene after the big fight where Bogart presses to find out how much their fighter will ultimately wind up for getting so badly beaten in the ring.
There are probably a good dozen very, very good fight films, and this belongs to their number. The tension in the film derives from the ultimate conflict between Bogart's inherent decency and Steiger's unmitigated exploitativeness. The two had great on screen chemistry in their scenes together. They employed very different acting styles, Steiger being one of the first Method actors to enjoy success in the movies. Bogart was strictly old school, but he not only held his own, he dominated their scenes together.
Humphrey Bogart's last movie was a triumph! His acting was terrific! Excellent movie!
My favorite line in this movie is when Bogart angrily asks Steiger how he'd like to have his jaw broken like Toro's. Steiger's henchmen immediately start to converge on Bogart, who says, "He didn't have 5 guys in the ring with him." It's a great line that brings home how the powerful are protected from the very pain they inflict on others.
The movie's title, from the old saying, "the bigger they are, the harder they fall," is also very ironic, because the "big" guys Steiger and the corrupt fight backers actually never "fall" it is only the "little" guys, like Toro, who fall the hardest.
By the way, it was really spooky seeing Max Baer himself re-create his historic fight with Primo Carnera in this film, which is based on Max Baer's historic fight with Primo Carnera! You can see a film of this 1934 fight online, in which Baer knocks Carnera down 11 times in 11 rounds. By round 2, Baer was actually chasing Carnera around the ring, and at least 3 times he knocked him down so hard that he actually fell on top of him!
Near the end of the film, long after the swindle was known by the audience, as well as the protagonist (Bogart), the bookkeeper continued pouring over every tidbit of budget magic showing the details of how the boxer was skillfully swindled of his money. All of the expenses were taken out of his share, as the others in the heist took their money off the top.
Other movies would have made it a swift effort, but director Mark Robson knew that the details of the swindle is what made it seedy, and so he wanted the audience to see and hear it all. And it is the details that come after the brutality that make the conclusion all the more powerful.
Ultimately, the moral lesson is that the worst profession a person can undertake is one that profits off the bodies of other people.
Of special note are the number of actual boxers who acted parts in the film, including Jersey Joe Walcott, who was heavyweight champion from 1951-52, and who delivered one of the best lines of the movie, when asked why their boxer didn't protect himself like he was instructed, replied, "Some guys can sell out and other guys just can't. Goodnight!" There was a lot about this movie that was ahead of its time, including the meaningful roles of black actors such as Wolcott.
Max Baer was the other real world fighter who played an important role in the film. He was heavyweight champion from 1934-35, winning the title against Primo Carnera, an historical fact that was eerily paralleled in this movie. So well did Baer play the role of the bloodthirsty pugilist, that his reputation as an actual boxer was sullied by people who foolishly confused his actual boxing career with his performance in this film!
It should not go without notice that two real-world heavyweight boxing champions played prominent roles in this film, which very much exposed the corruption in the sport. Today, that corruption is well known, but this film was made in 1956, when most people took the sport as being clean.
Today, the film remains as relevant as ever, and Bogart's skill is a prime reason why. He expertly sells the movie with the kind of adroit and nuanced acting that was the hallmark of the legend's career. Few actors get to make such a strong statement in his final role!
¿Sabías que…?
- TriviaJoe Greb has a small and uncredited role as a brain-damaged boxer who gives an interview about the damaging effects of the sport. In reality, Greb had a 12 year career as a boxer and fought in 119 bouts during that period. Greb suffered irreparable brain damage from his time as a boxer and was a vocal proponent of fighter safety. In essence, he plays himself in this film.
- ErroresIn the opening, when Eddie hires a cab, initially it's a '55 Plymouth; in the next scene, as they're driving off, it's a '54 Ford.
- Citas
[Willis tells Toro to throw his fight with Buddy Brannen to avoid getting hurt]
Toro Moreno: I don't know, I don't know. What would people think of me?
Eddie Willis: What do you care what a bunch of bloodthirsty, screaming people think of you? Did you ever get a look at their faces? They pay a few lousy bucks hoping to see a man get killed. To hell with them! Think of yourself. Get your money and get out of this rotten business.
- ConexionesFeatured in Great Performances: Bacall on Bogart (1988)
Selecciones populares
- How long is The Harder They Fall?Con tecnología de Alexa
Detalles
- Fecha de lanzamiento
- País de origen
- Idiomas
- También se conoce como
- The Harder They Fall
- Locaciones de filmación
- New York International Airport, Jamiaca, Nueva York, Estados Unidos(New York International Airport, now John F. Kennedy International Airport)
- Productora
- Ver más créditos de la compañía en IMDbPro
Taquilla
- Total en EE. UU. y Canadá
- USD 1,350,000
- Tiempo de ejecución1 hora 49 minutos
- Color
- Relación de aspecto
- 1.85 : 1