Punch

This film is essentially about the relationship with between a single father and his daughter. But there's a very clunky other element to it - topless female boxing. It's supposed to be a 'hook' to get people to see the film, but frankly it would be much much better left out completely since it just doesn't work alongside the father daughter relationship theme and is a long way past the wrong side of grotesque.

The conflicts and alliances that exist between the father, daughter, father's girlfriend and her sister are portayed effectively, often highlighting the success of calmly resolving an issue instead of being aggressive and violent. The film reminded me of Almodovar's work in its handling of complicated relationships in unique situations, although sometimes I felt it wasn't showing me anything I hadn't seen before (topless female boxing aside).

The acting is excellent, particularly that of Sonja Bennett and Meredith McGeachie who portray their respective characters with complexity and emotion, but without going overboard.

Overall, it's a well constructed film with a lot of issues that walk out of the cinema with you and it's probably a shame that most people won't see it.