A Fighting Man

I expected very little from this movie. I noticed I wasn't really in the mood for a movie after a couple minutes watching it, but I was too lazy to turn it off. And I'm happy I didn't. I wasn't really into the movie in the beginning, and I didn't understand why they had to cut off the fighting scene all the time with these flashbacks. However after a couple, these flashbacks started telling a compelling back-story of the older fighter. So I naturally parted with him, since I'm always trying to find a hero and a villain in the movies. Then the movie slowly introduced the back-story of the other fighter and I was torn. Who am I rooting for now? What is this? "Too many feels!"

I don't want to tell too much of the story, but it follows two boxers who have their own reasons for stepping into the ring. And this movie tells those stories in a unique way. I don't think I've ever seen a fighting movie where there was only one fight, but this was perfect. I really enjoyed the movie, and if you like deeper, emotional fighting or sports movies, this movie is a great pick for both you and girl on any night of the week.

"The best we can do is to forgive ourselves." Sailor O'Connor (Purcell) is an aging fighter with a past that won't let him go. He is trying to move on when he is approached by a local promoter for one last fight. After agreeing for the biggest payday he's ever had he tells his mother and old trainer, neither of whom is happy about it. His opponent is an up and coming young kid with a past he is also trying to change. Together they fight not only each other but the past they can't forget. As many of you know I am a huge fan of sports movies. Being a lower budget one that not many people have heard of I wasn't expecting too much from this. I'm not sure if that had any effect on my feelings toward this but I really really enjoyed it. Every other boxing movie I have seen tells the story of the characters then ends with the fight. This one switches between the fighting and the story which I really enjoyed. You see some punches then part of the fighters life which segues beautifully into the break in between rounds. That gives extra meaning to the rest period. I could go on and on about this but I'll end by saying I highly recommend this. Overall, not sure if it was because I wasn't expecting something this good but I really enjoyed this. I actually liked it more then The Fighter. I give this an A-.

It's nice and refreshing to see a movie about two boxers, where you get to see both sides and might not be able to pick a favorite. Of course deciding to start with the fight and then going back in flashbacks, might either be enticing for viewers or appalling. You'll have to make your own mind up about that.

Acting-wise you get quite a lot of good people in this. James Caan, Kim Coates, Michael Ironside and Famke Janssen to name a couple. Mostly they don't share the screen together, but you still get the gravitas a movie like this needs. It's nice storytelling, with slowly revealing/uncovering its layers. Not really surprising in the end, but still a nice movie to watch

i just saw actor dominic purcell in the movie "a fighting man"! give an academy award to him, the other actors, the producer, the director, the man who wrote the script! i saw all of the "rocky" movies. every one. this is more true to life.a child sees his father brutally hit his mother. then, the father knocks him against the window of the car, and cracks it. the child vows to his mother to never get knocked down right then and there! and, "sailor", played by dominic purcell, is not knocked down, even in his last, his sixty-fourth, fight. his mother raises him herself. the father has run off, abandoning the both of them. my father did the same thing.i see myself in "sailor". this is a prizefighters movie. this is not some "pink and white idiot's" movie about what it must be to be a prizefighter. this is a movie in which the entire cast spills their guts out! purcell was born in england, but, raised in Australia. Australia is a man's world. how many innocent men and women were sent to "new south wales" as convicts years ago? the raw seething beneath the skin for past injustices done to his people comes to life in dominic purcell. bravo! to everyone involved! a masterpiece!

I wasn't expecting much, but this came as a pleasant surprise! The editing uses flashbacks in between rounds to tell the motivations that drive the two fighters, revealing their personal dramas little by little.

This helps to keep you interested on the movie, and ultimately on the outcome of the fight.

It also works because there's no 'villain' on the ring - both characters have good reasons to be on this match, and it's difficult to root just for one of them (though for me Dominic Purcell has a slight edge, if anything for being older).