Southpaw (2015)
Certified: 15
Duration: 123 minutes
Directed by: Antoine Fuqua
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Forest Whitaker, Rachel McAdams, Naomie Harris, Victor Ortiz, Curtis ‘50 Cent’ Jackson, Miguel Gomez, Oona Laurence, Beau Knapp, Rita Ora, Clare Foley, Skylan Brooks
KRS Releasing Ltd
In this boxing drama, Jake Gyllenhaal is Billy Hope, a light-heavyweight boxing champion with an incredible record of 43-0. But the road to success had not been easy.
Billy grew up in an orphanage, as did his wife Maureen (Rachel McAdams). The couple have a daughter named Leila (Oona Laurence).
His manager, Jordan Mains (50 Cent), has a whole list of contenders waiting to take a shot at him in the ring. The primary contender is Miguel Escobar (Miguel Gomez) who is always taunting Billy and confronting him. At one point a fight erupts and a gun is drawn, which leads to Maureen being killed in an accidental fire.
Billy’s life takes a downward turn as he cannot cope with the consequences.
His next fight is a complete disaster and he gets suspended from the ring. To top it all, he loses Leila as the State takes over her custody. That is when he decides he needs to get his life back on track.
Acting performances, strong emotions, pathos and drama in and out of the ring take centre stage
He teams up with trainer Titus ‘Tick’ Wills (Forest Whitaker) who shows him a new fighting style, a new skill set which could give him another chance in the ring while rebuilding his dignity and bring back his daughter. He wants to earn her love and respect since she blames him for what happened to their family.
Southpaw may quench one’s thirst like fresh homemade lemonade on a hot summer afternoon. Acting performances, strong emotions, pathos and drama in and out of the ring take centre stage in this film.
Fuqua, who has directed such modern classics such as Training Day (2001) and the recent Equalizer (2014), here spares nopunches as he delivers with all guns blazing.
Gyllenhaal really melds himself into his character. He makes for a very convincing and effective human punching bag that it is very difficult not to sympathise with him. He takes viewers along with him on a rollercoaster emotional ride and, surprisingly enough, some of the best moments of the film are those set out of the ring. Among the supporting cast, 50 Cent once again shows he can play the everyman character and turn him into an everyday hero quite well.
Whitaker also brings some good acting which entrenched in the story.
Southpaw’s story is nothing new as the script brings together all the usual staples of the boxing genre.
However, Fuqua and his main star wear their heart on their sleeve and the movie comes out looking fresh on so many levels.