C

I didn't like it much. Bale's good, but the rest of it plays as a generic Rocky clone, and the whole thing is a complete cartoon. How can anyone not laugh whenever Mickey's family is on screen? His half dozen sisters actually try to beat up his girlfriend, for God's sake.

I laughed my ass off at the sisters, but their "cartoonish" nature didn't bother me. I imagine that's probably how those sisters are actually like IRL.

Plus, come on. The scenes of Charlene interacting with Alice and the sisters were funnier than most comedies this year.

This was probably my favorite scene in the movie (although this clip cuts off the first part of it), though:

First I think the sisters should be viewed as 1 character. And then they were just an extension of the mother, to confirm the mother's craziness.

And they were needed to show where Mickey came from and what he had to break away from, to get to the top.

And it was real with the sisters fighting and protecting their brother, or really the money he brought in.

Just like when the crazy mother/wife was throwing the dishes.

I found them as annoying as anyone in an Adam Sandler comedy. I actually considered walking out halfway through from sheer boredom.

The Dark Shape is correct.

Never come to Boston.

The story and the achievements are split evenly between Dickey and Mark's character.

You know what, YOU SUCK.

Good point.

Amy Adams didn't suck, but she's playing a very one-note sort of character. My inability to really connect with Mickey is definitely the biggest fault -- he's just there. I don't care if he wins or loses. I don't care if he reconciles with his cartoon family.

I'm really worried about Uncharted at this point, because Wahlberg's never been good at "I'm a good guy, please like me!" roles.

Another big disappointment for me. Classic 'it'll only be remembered for the Oscar winning performance' film. Outside of Bale it's completley forgettable bait fare and adds absolutely nothing to the sports film genre. An underdog poor guy becomes champ, well whatya know...

I agree with the comment that said Wahlberg doesn't matter here. Dickie is the real central character, Wahlberg's the guy they stick in so they have a plot to waste 2 hours with

Pure C+ film

Good lord you are gay. She's incredibly sexy in a down-to-earth kind of way here. So smoking, and it's a great, understated performance too that's unlike anything she's done yet not at all "Look at me I'm playing against type!" distracting.

BTW, Libs seems to be the only one correct about this - it's about twenty times more compelling and entertaining than you'd expect this kind of movie to be. Somehow it's one of my very favorite movies of the year.

And the sisters are awesome.

Despite this probably turning into my favorite movie of last year (even if Black Swan was more memorable), I still have to agree with Magnus. Amy Adams in this movie was the film's biggest weak point. SHe was not sexy, but that shouldn't matter, and she was not larger than life enough like Melissa Leo or the sisters or truly down-to-earth enough like some people claim she was.

Oh and the hate on Whalberg? Sure he kinda was a wall flower, but wasn't that point of the character? I resonated with him, perhaps because I know people who went through his situation (from the sports angle) and I myself have had relationships like his with Adams' character (from the family angle). Also, I know everyone is warranted an opinion free from objectivity (despite some thinking their opinion is holy than others), but everyone at least has to give some props to Mark Whalberg for the sheer amount of effort he put into this film.

I thought Wahlberg was terrific in this? It's a sweetly understated performance, perhaps really surprising considering his past roles.

Oh and another point I'd like to bring up: The Fighter should, as a contribution to art, not be remembered as a film about boxing, or about family, but instead about the culture of Lowell, Massachusetts and cities like it (Flint, Michigan as an examble). Perhaps this was the point behind the documentary within the film, as not only a dramatic turning point for the character Dickie, but also an insight into how the country views this town, as a mess.

Meanwhile it is the characters who make up the population of the town to give the town some heart. Sure you can call the character cartoonish, and you wouldn't be entirely incorrect, most of them are certainly over the top and larger than life, but have you ever hung out with people in these situations, certain the ones surrounding the drug culture? I have, and while I won't use my year as being a personal care attendant against anyone, I will say it gave me some examples. A lot of people in these situations have defined themselves through cheap means. They defined themselves through trashy movies, through exploitative television, and through their stubborn cling onto conservative ways of the past despite their obsolete nature.

Over the years they have become a laughing stalk of the world, the characters and their culture they bring with them. They can either continue to be a part of how the world sees them, or become something of themselves. Indeed the characters represent something larger than themselves. Their plot is one that will give life to a forgotten or washed up town. Mickey is not fighting just for himself, not just for his family, but indeed for the town itself as a symbol.

This movie continues that struggle, that fight, and more importantly, that culture, a culture that has unfortunately come to dominate cities of the north here in the US. In a capitalist society that is cruel to its people, not by its intentions, but certainly by its results, often times people forget about the losers of the years, the towns that have already busted in this boom and bust economic system that defines our greater culture. Lowell, Massachusetts is the Roman Empire circa 600 ADE, and this movie gives some insight into fallen culture, and also a dramatic retelling of its re-rise back to glory.

No, you're gay, as in incapable of being attracted to women that are attractive. Any sane straight man should want to bone Amy Adams. I don't care if she's not some skinny bitch model, she's fantastically sexy and compelling here.

God this place has become gross.

lol! This was enjoyable.

No, one does not really have to give dear marky mark any credit at all. He was quite dull, even wretched here. His performance wreaked of, well.... nothing. It had no smell whatsoever actually. It carried no scent of work or effort or talent or anything at all. It was quite orderless and dull. Whatever sweat he may have pretended to work up during the brief super serious excercise scenes in the gym did not actually carry over to the movie. Like, at all.

"Reeked." For future reference.

Benjamin Milk: You might actually have worse opinions than Magnus, but you frame them in such a way that really does not seem to have a particular goal other than impressing trixster and yoshue.

I am not impressed.

Amy Adams is hot. This is a question?

No, it's not. I haven't seen The Fighter, but this seems a very fundamental question anyway, so...

It'd be quite a revolution if any of you spent as much time writing and thinking about movies as you do on the attractiveness of actresses. Can't expect too much I guess.