Southpaw
The story is very deep and emotional bringing hope, no pun intended, and stress from start to finish. You can tell they the writers did research or at least had first hand knowledge of the pain of losing a spouse and mother to provide Oona and Jake.
Synopsis
Billy Hope (Jake Gyllenhaal) is a boxer who is challenged by a wanna-be. During a charity event, a brawl ensues and Mo (Rachel McAdams) is shot killing her. Watch the redemption story for Billy as he struggles to restart his life and take care of his daughter.
Review
This is one of my favorite movies and should have won awards for the acting by almost everyone involved. It is almost a perfect movie, but I will explain my complaints at the end.
The story is very deep and emotional bringing hope, no pun intended, and stress from start to finish. You can tell they the writers did research or at least had first hand knowledge of the pain of losing a spouse and mother to provide Oona and Jake.
One of my major complaints is the choreography of some of the fights are BLANTLY staged and while I don't expect actors to take full hits, there can be some actual fighting and not just camera work. This is not so much the final fight, but most of the ones leading up to it the choreography is off just enough that the person taking the hit moves just before the hit would come.
My other complaint is 50 Cent. He is a terrible actor and while I know VERY little about him, he seems like he is just playing himself. His voice doesn't change between scenes, his face doesn't really seem to move with the actions/words he is saying. Just not a fan of his acting. He does a great job of being a sleezy character though. So kudos.
On the flip side of that, Jake and Oona are at the highlight of their career's in this film. There wasn't a second that I didn't believe that this was a personal story for them. Also the chemistry of the father daughter combo was perfect. I truly believe that Jake will never have a better performance and Oona is amazing at such a young age that I can't wait to see what else she does.
My Rating
I would love to give this a 10, but it isn't perfect. It is one of my favorite movies and I love the acting in it, but 50 Cent and some of the fights keep it from being perfect. 9/10.
Parental Rating
Lots and lots of language. Violence, obviously it is a boxing movie. I think my dad would want to watch it but would never make it though while my mom wouldn't even try. They're out.
