Absolutely blown away. Blubbered my eyes out, half of the people in the cinema did. Not even a boxing film really, only one fight in it, but people who are fans will probably appreciate a few familiar faces. It feels pretty authentic. Don’t let the central premise put you off.
Should probably say that despite being a huge fan of boxing i think fiction films about it have probably only been exhausted more than gangster films. Went to watch this one primarily because of the casting of Jodie Whittaker, who’s brilliant, and because you’re pretty much guaranteed a good performance from Considine, and because it’s a bit of a fresh take on standard films about boxers. The little nuances he brings to the part after the injury are pretty astonishing.
Really excited about him as a director. His first film, Tyrannosaur, had Eddie Marsan, Olivia Colman and Peter Mullan in, and whilst the latter’s been in a fair bit of shite they’re all, same for Whittaker and Considine himself, pretty similar in that at their best they all have this natural believable sadness to them when they play serious parts.
If i had to have a slight quibble it’d be that a couple of the secondary castings lack something. Does feel like the second half of the film gets a bit…Where The Heart Is after a pretty intense a claustraphobic first half, bit overall it’s the finest British film i’ve seen in a few years and one of the most personable i’ve seen full stop.
Considine’s just an absolute top boy, eh?
Anyone else bothered?
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