Christy

It's not trying to reinvent cinema, but it tells its story with sincerity and a steady emotional pull. The performances feel grounded, the pacing works for the kind of story it wants to tell, and there's a quiet authenticity that kept me engaged throughout.

Sure, it has a few rough edges, but nothing that justifies the harsh criticism it's received. If you go in with reasonable expectations and let the film do its thing, it's an enjoyable and worthwhile watch. Definitely better than its reputation suggests.

In the last 30 years there has been at least one pugilistic film released every year. Movies about female boxers are still rare. 2000 gave us Michelle Rodriguez in Girlfight. Hilary Swank won a Best Actress Oscar for her role in Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby in 2004. In 2014 India gave us Mary Kom. Last year (2024) we had The Fire Inside, a biopic about Claressa "T-Rex" Shields. And now, just in time for award season we have Sydney Sweeney bringing the story of Christy Salters to the screen.

I knew nothing about Christy Salters going into my screening. This naïve, rambunctious scrapper from West Virginia started her pugilistic journey by entering a local strong man contest in 1989. She kept boxing around the area where she lived winning small purses. By 1995 she was being scouted, taking an offer Jim Martin (Ben Foster) to train her. He got her fights, and she continued to get noticed until she got a meeting with the infamous Don King (Chad L. Coleman), at which point her career skyrocketed.

This is a movie about Christy taken in by a less than scrupulous man, about Christy who preferred women at a time when that was frowned upon, about Christy who is constantly at odds with her religiously snobbish mother Joyce Salters (Merritt Wever). Joyce does everything in her power to come between Christy and her real love Rosie (Jess Gabor). We follow the twists and turns of Christy's life, and the painful existence that attached itself to her.

Sweeney and Foster electrify the screen with their performances. Sure, at times it does feel like another boxing biopic. At other times it is engaging, like riding a roller coaster of emotions with the title character. Sweeney conveys the full range of those emotions, sometimes with just her eyes. Foster embodies the creepy Jim without any sense of self-consciousness. I have always liked Ben Foster no matter what the roll. This is a good bad one for him. And the final act is worth it when it comes. You just wait and see what hits you.

Rating - 6.2: Overall, this movie does not know what it wants to be, as it tries to be both a sports movie and a hard-hitting drama about trauma, but does not give enough time to be great at either; the first two acts and resolution are just a generic boxing movie, but the third act truly is a powerful drama about trauma and abuse, as Sydney Sweeney delivers a pretty powerful performance in this portion of the movie.

Direction - Decent: The direction on a macroscale is a major issue for the movie because it just feels generic, especially in the first hour and the final 15 minutes; The macroscale direction in the 3rd act is good, but the problem for this movie is that it does not know what it wants to be; The direction on a microscale is pretty generic, a little dull at times because there really isn't that much chemistry in the cast and a lot of the performances feel exaggerated or over-the-top; The storytelling is a major issue for this movie because for Act 1, 2, and the resolution, it is just a generic boxing movie that sprinkles in personal issues; I did enjoy the storytelling in Act 3 because it deals more with the personal issues of Christy, but ultimately in the end, this movie does not know what story it wants to tell (her career or her personal struggles) as it tries to do both when it can't; Tension is pretty predictable and bland for Act 1, 2, and the resolution, but it is very good in the third act because it uses our uncomfortable feelings with what is going on screen to make you feel very uneasy

Story - Pretty Bad: The concept is the life of Christy Martin, but the movie tries to touch on both her boxing career and her personal struggles when it should only really touch on the latter to be profound; The plot structure is a major issue for this movie because it is this generic boxing movie for Acts 1, 2, and the Resolution, but it is a different movie in the third Act; Because of its weird structure, the movie does not know what it wants to be; Character writing is pretty good to good for Christy because it does paint her as a flawed character who projects negativity because of the trauma she receives at home, but every other character is just a generic trope

Screenplay - Pretty Bad: The dialogue is so generic and bland; the humor is decent; the symbolism is profound in act three because of the DV issues they talk about, but it is generic for the most part; the foreshadowing is a massive issue for this movie because it's very obvious where this movie is heading with on the nose roots the movie places throughout the movie; I was shocked that the crowd didn't know things were going to happen because I read this movie like a book

Acting - Pretty Bad: Sydney Sweeney - Pretty Good (Definitely one of her better performances, as she transforms herself for the role; even though the accent work is a little rough at times, and it doesn't really seem like she is doing anything special, she delivers a pretty powerful performance in the third act), Ben Foster - Bad to Pretty Bad (Just such an over-the-top performance that feels like over-acting at times than realistic definitely feels menacing and his lack of chemistry with Sweeney helps, but this is just more how the character is written rather than his performance), Merritt Wever - Pretty Bad (Very subdued and quiet performance; is meant to show lack of emotion and empathy, yet still somehow doesn't feel believable when she does this), Katy O'Brian - Pretty Bad (Just a generic performance; nothing really stands out about it), Rest of the cast - Pretty Bad (There doesn't feel like there is any chemistry between any of the cast members; the background actors just feel generic)

Score - Decent: Standard helps with establishing tone and tension

Soundtrack - Pretty Bad: Generic boxing movie soundtrack;

Cinematography - Decent: Standard; nothing special; what you would expect from a boxing movie

Editing - Decent: Standard; nothing special; what you would expect from a boxing movie

Sound - Pretty Good: Crisp; what you want from a boxing movie

Visual Effects - Decent: helps show gore and injuries; does not age the people well

Makeup - Decent: Helps show gore and injuries; Does not age people well

Costumes - Pretty Good: Gives Christy iconic boxing outfits

Pacing - Pacing is slow in Act 1, 2, and the resolution because of how generic it is; pacing is just right in Act 3 because it helps with building the tension

Climax - Climax is the best part of the love, as it is executed very well, making you uneasy with what is going on; the ending is straight up a Dhar Mann narration

Tone - This movie doesn't know what it wants to be; it tries to be both a sports movie and a hard-hitting drama about trauma, but it tries to play both sides and doesn't do a good job being right for the whole movie

Final Notes - Saw premiere at Austin Film Festival.

Caught Christy as the Regal Mystery Movie. Not a big sports person and have never heard of Christy Martin prior to this. The film spans over 20 years, and thats just too much. A storied career like this deserves more time. Maybe a mini series?

Positives!

+Ben Foster melts into the role of Jim and you'll despise him!

+Tragic story of how everyone failed Christy Martin.

+Some good tunes!

+Sydney gives another okay performance.

Negatives!

-Characters hardly age in 20 years, just some hair and outfit changes.

-Plots are thrown in for a few minutes then never mentioned again.

-Lacks emotional depth.

-Doesn't go deep enough into storylines that could have improved movie flow.

Honestly, I wasn't expecting to like Christy. It was mostly okay, more of a drama than sports movie. But the drama is too shallow to elicit deeper thoughts. However, it feels like a movie that people will enjoy because it gives the bare minimum to get interest.

-GremlinLord615!

-Full Review on Youtube!

I saw this as the amc mystery movie...I was planning to see it weeks ago as well...and i would've never thought in a million years I wouId say this ls actually better than Smashing Machine, Its boxing but the fights are better, longer and smoother, the story is slightly thin but stiII becomes entertaining, Sydney Sweeney can ACT...it's just better than Smashing Machine...I can compare both films because it's has two actors stepping out their comfort zone, but Sydney definitely stepped out of hers, and she still nailed it...I never heard about this female boxer until I saw this film...it's pretty brutal for a story, but now im interested in this real life boxer's story.