Movie Review - Southpaw

Southpaw ** (out of 5) (R) Although the title evokes baseball imagery, it’s actually a drama about the ups and downs of a pro boxer, played by a newly muscled-up version of Jake Gyllenhaal, morphing him into a Ryan Gosling avatar. As the film opens, he’s defending his championship, while blissfully married to a loving wife (Rachel McAdams) who does all the thinking for him and their daughter. Jake’s at the top of his game. But out of the ring, his anger control and cerebral functions rank in the lower percentiles. His idyllic time in the spotlight is suddenly shattered by tragedy, starting a long spiral to the bottom before an arduous path to a shot at redemption.

Director Antoine Fuqua crafted elements of a fine entry into the genre, with Gyllenhaal’s performance packing plenty of punch both in the ring, and as a flawed, yet sympathetic, figure in the rest of his troubled life. Unfortunately, both are ill-served by Kurt Sutter’s first non-TV screenplay. We get about 80 minutes of solid boxing flick, with the requisite arc for loss and recovery, overwhelmed by the other 40 minutes of soap opera. Jake’s collapse is too long, too deep and too turgid for his resurgence to carry its intended emotional impact. Perhaps the lack of balance was presaged by naming its star - a great white boxer - Billy...wait for it... HOPE. By the time of reaching the climactic sequence, many will have thrown in their towels. The star trained long and hard with Floyd Mayweather to add muscle and shed his normal body fat. Too bad no one did the same for the script. (7/24/15)