As an Antoine Fuqua fan since the days of Training Day I was really looking forward to seeing this movie. And when I found out the man behind Sons of Anarchy and The Shield, Kurt Sutter was the writer my excitement doubled. I figured those two men alone would be just as good together as the partnership of David Fincher and Aaron Sorkin in my mind. Sadly if Fuqua and Sutter plan on working together again, they need to do a far better job of telling a story. Southpaw opened the doors to so many potentially amazing stories and conversations only to slam those doors closed and ignore them entirely. Either those stories were lost in the editing room or it was lazy filmmaking. Those are the only two reasons I can come up with as to why this movie fell the fuck apart the way it did. There were multiple plot devices and out of all those introduced, only one had closure. I also don't understand why the movie was called Southpaw when that aspect of boxing played a very minuscule role in the film. I really wanted to like this fucking film way more than I did but it failed to educate the fine intricacies of boxing to the average film goer who is a casual boxing fan. In my mind missing a teachable moment is criminal.
Thankfully the performances in Southpaw overcame a crumbling story in completely wonderful ways. Jake Gyllenhaal was scintillating in this movie. He may have been overlooked for some award in the past but I firmly doubt that will happen after seeing his portrayal of boxer Billy Hope. Rachel McAdams plays Maureen Hope, Billy's wife and Oona Laurence plays their daughter Leila. After losing his wife to a shooting accident due to his temper, Billy loses his license to box by assaulting a ref in his next fight and then loses his daughter to child services and his house. He then seeks out the trainer of the one fighter Hope felt he lost to for help, Forrest Whitaker's Tick Wills. The two men start off on unsure footing and almost come to blows until Billy humbles himself. While Billy goes through the motions of getting his life together in order to get his daughter back his biggest rival Miguel Escobar, played by Miguel Gomez is now managed by Billy's one time manager Jordan Mains played with the appropriate amount of sleaze by Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson and being trained by Billy's one time trainer Eli Frost, played by Jose Caraballo. Every performance was well executed and sharp which is a testament to Fuqua's talent as a director.
Southpaw's glaring flaws in the storyline were also slightly overshadowed by the technical prowess the film displayed. HBO's involvement in the film with the inclusion of Jim Lampley and Roy Jones Jr. lent a real air of authenticity. The parts of the film when fighting occurs is breathtaking. It's some of the best camera work done in the ring since Michael Mann's amazing Ali. You are put right in the middle of the fighting and many of the punches came directly at the camera. Oscar award winning cinematographer Mauro Fiore captured the true brutality of the sweet science in ways rarely seen on the big screen. It was truly sublime work. One of the last scores by James Horner was scarce and ultimately forgettable but to his defense Southpaw is a movie that doesn't really need a score. The intensity is wound so tight in the movie that music isn't needed. I wish Southpaw was a better written movie but it's an exceptionally well crafted one. If you're a boxing fan, see this movie because you'll enjoy it. If you're hoping for a good story, skip it because it will disappoint and I'll see you that the theater.
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