The Fighter (I) (2010)

A look at the early years of boxer "Irish" Micky Ward and his brother who helped train him before going pro in the mid 1980s.

Director:

David O. Russell

Writers:

Scott Silver (screenplay), Paul Tamasy (screenplay),

Stars:

Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Amy Adams

Won 2 Oscars. Another 41 wins & 55 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mark Wahlberg	...	Micky Ward
Christian Bale	...	Dicky Eklund
Amy Adams	...	Charlene Fleming
Melissa Leo	...	Alice Ward
Jack McGee	...	George Ward
Mickey O'Keefe	...	Mickey O'Keefe
Melissa McMeekin	...	'Little Alice' Eklund
Bianca Hunter	...	Cathy 'Pork' Eklund
Erica McDermott	...	Cindy 'Tar' Eklund
Jill Quigg	...	Donna Eklund Jaynes
Dendrie Taylor	...	Gail 'Red Dog' Eklund
Kate B. O'Brien	...	Phyllis 'Beaver' Eklund (as Kate O'Brien)
Jenna Lamia	...	Sherri Ward
Frank Renzulli	...	Sal Lanano
Paul Campbell	...	Gary 'Boo Boo' Giuffrida

Storyline

The Fighter is a drama about boxer "Irish" Micky Ward's unlikely road to the world light welterweight title. His Rocky-like rise was shepherded by half-brother Dicky, a boxer-turned-trainer on the verge of being KO'd by drugs and crime.

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Plot Keywords:

boxing | boxer | lowell massachusetts | bartender | domineering mother | 

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Taglines:

Every dream deserves a fighting chance.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Sport

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language throughout, drug content, some violence and sexuality

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [fr]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 December 2010 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fighter

Filming Locations:

Lexington, Massachusetts, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£2,118,140 (UK) (4 February 2011)

Gross:

$93,571,803 (USA) (25 March 2011)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Closest to the Hole Productions, Fighter, Mandeville Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The young man who rushes into the restaurant to warn the Eklund-Ward family that Dicky is being beat up by the cops, is actually Sean Eklund, nephew of the real Micky Ward and Dicky Eklund and became New England Lightweight boxing champion in 2010.

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Goofs

Micky Ward does not have any tattoos throughout the film. However, one of Mark Wahlberg's tattoos (of Bob Marley on his left bicep) can be seen briefly under his shirt when he wakes up and stretches.

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Quotes

Alice Ward: What are you doing opening your mouth in my kitchen? You owe me $200.
Sherri Ward: I said I was gonna pay you next week.
Alice Ward: I don't want another word outta you!

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Crazy Credits

The real Micky Ward and Dicky Eklund are shown during the end credits.

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Connections

Referenced in The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Episode #21.43 (2012)

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Soundtracks

"HBO Feature Presentation Theme"
Written and Performed by Ferdinand Jay Smith
Courtesy of Home Box Office, Inc.

User Reviews

A winner!

"O the joy of the strong-brawn'd fighter, towering in the arena in perfect condition, conscious of power, thirsting to meet his opponent." Walt Whitman

Mark Wahlberg has achieved a career high with The Fighter, not so much for his acting, which is eclipsed by a supportive cast that would be hard to beat in the Oscar race, but because he fought for years to bring the story of Lowell, Mass. to the screen. He caught perfectly the blue-collar town's karma and their devotion to the fighting brothers, "Irish" Mickey Ward (Wahlberg) and Dicky Eklund (Christian Bale).

Director David O. Russell has assembled this cast around the idea that a town in the shadow of Boston can become world famous as its sons become winners in the ring. But then, Stallone did more for Philadelphia as Rocky, so what's the big deal? Like Ben Affleck's excellent thriller this year about Boston in The Town, Fighter captures place and struggle in equal dramatic measure as filmmakers take a close look at the working class's struggles over the last 30 years. While Million Dollar Baby (2004) focused on trainer and fighter and Cinderella Man (2005) gave a microscopic view of a troubled fighter and his small family, The Fighter does all of that with a vigor as exhausting as a bout itself.

The Fighter is not just about boxing because as in Martin Scorsese's Raging Bull (1980), it's all about people who find in the sport a way to transcend their social prison. In The Fighter, it is more even about family, which weighs heavily on Micky's success or failure. And outside family as well, for girlfriend, bartender Charlene Fleming (Amy Adams), is a formidable force in liberating Micky from the suffocating family (his five harpy sisters and domineering manager mother, Melissa Leo, fearsome in her cigarette smoke and driving vision for her sons). Unlike other boxing films, Fighter is patient with Micky's long climb to success, almost painfully long but rewarding in the reality of its prolonged struggle.

But it's also the acting that distinguishes it: Christian Bale as Dicky transforms himself again by losing weight and morphing into a manic brother who loves Micky despite Dicky's negative life of drugs and mania; Amy Adams is believable as the gritty but beautiful girl friend; and Melissa Leo plays mom like a lady Macbeth in tight Dockers.

Although there will be heavier films competing for 2010's Oscar, I can't think of another whose cast so eloquently has caught the poverty and riches of a town caught in boxing fever.