Review of Southpaw (2015) by Susanna M — 26 Aug 2015

Without the pummeling lead performance knocking audiences breathless, the sometimes formulaic Southpaw might just go down as a low blow in the shadow of some legendary boxing films. Yes, the story brings some gripping twists to this pugilist regimen but there's no getting over the desperate fighter asking a hardened, philosophical, older trainer for guidance. That, moviegoers, just mines everything from Rocky to Million Dollar Baby and those films echo throughout as a result. Sure, the title character stands high and unmighty at the outset, nouveau riche with gang sign street cred. Soon after, however, the action descends into a riches to rags tale with only one way out: title match comeback.

In this R-rated sports drama, boxer Billy Hope (Gyllenhall) turns to trainer Tick Willis (Forrest Whitaker) to help him get his life back on track after losing his wife (McAdams) in a tragic accident and his daughter (Oona Laurence) to child protection services.

Thankfully, former boxer and ace director Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, The Equalizer) infuses the goings-on with enough verve to distract from the all-too-familiar plot points. His style, however, pales in comparison with his choice of actor. Jake Gyllenhall, already deserving of Oscar's glory for Prisoners and Nightcrawler, immerses himself so believably into this character that you wonder if he'll be punch drunk for the remainder of his career. Matching his quiet intensity so perfectly in every scene together, child actress Oona Laurence more than holds her own. More than Wallace Beery and Jackie Cooper in The Champ, they stand triumphant even when the screenplay by Sons of Anarchy creator Kurt Sutter feels recycled.

Bottom line: Dirty South.