Boxing films remain a popular sub-genre of sports films, with several great films centered on famous or fictional boxers. This week, Jake Gyllenhaal fights his way to the top in Southpaw, a boxing drama from director Antonie Fuqua. What better excuse than to talk about our five favorite boxing movies?
Million Dollar Baby
Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby stands as an exceptional boxing film as it is one of the few to truly explore the relationship between a boxer and trainer. Eastwood gives a powerful performance as an aging trainer desperate to mentor the next champ, with Hilary Swank as an up-and-coming boxer on the verge of a title championship. It's an inspirational story of triumph, but also a touching film about life and love, with the boxing element being just one of the film's great qualities.
Ali
Adapting the life of one of the most famous boxers in history, Ali follows the titular boxer through his personal struggles, social activism and boxing career. Will Smith brings an incredible gravitas to the role, combining a gritty realism that's seldom seen in biographical films with the onscreen charisma that Smith is known for. Ali serves as an interesting boxing film because its fight scenes are somewhat secondary to the social and political ideals of the story, but it works as both a biographical drama and a powerful sports film.
The Fighter
The Fighter is not only an exciting sports story about love and redemption, but also a beautiful family story that expertly explores the theme of brotherhood. Mark Wahlberg gives an emotional and grounded performance as Micky Ward, a down-on-his-luck boxer trained by his drug addicted half-brother Dicky, portrayed by Christian Bale. The film avoids boxing movie clichés by focusing on the strained relationship between the brothers and their mutual love of boxing, which binds them together and forces them to put aside their differences.
Rocky
The quintessential underdog story, Rocky set the standard for boxing films -- and sports films in general -- generations hence. Sylvester Stallone gives an iconic performance as the titular boxer who gets the chance of a lifetime: fighting heavyweight champion Apollo Creed. The boxing element is more grounded in a way not seen in film before, giving an added realism and excitement to the film. However, it's the work of Stallone (who starred in and wrote the film) that captures a relatable character that the audience roots for that establishes the film as an American classic, and an icon of the boxing genre.
Raging Bull
Martin Scorsese's Raging Bull tops the list of the greatest boxing films; a disturbing Othello story of greed and obsession circling around boxer Jake LeMotta, played by Robert De Niro in an all-time great performance. The film's boxing scenes are brutally realized, with De Niro committing to the part with a record breaking weight gain, as well as some beautiful black and white cinematography. Raging Bull is an exhilarating boxing film combined with a harrowing study of jealousy and rage, standing not only as the greatest boxing film of all-time, but a character-based genre for the ages.
