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Chuck

Original title: The Bleeder
  • 20162016
  • RR
  • 1h 38m
IMDb RATING
6.5/10
6.6K
YOUR RATING
Liev Schreiber in Chuck (2016)
The real life inspiration for Rocky Balboa, Chuck Wepner (Liev Schreiber) was a liquor salesman and father with a modest prizefighting career whose life changed overnight when, in 1975, he was chosen to take on The Greatest in a highly publicized title match.
Play trailer1:30
3 Videos
19 Photos
BiographyDramaSport
A drama inspired by the life of heavyweight boxer Chuck Wepner, who had a once-in-a-lifetime bout with Muhammad Ali that would inspire the film Rocky (1976).A drama inspired by the life of heavyweight boxer Chuck Wepner, who had a once-in-a-lifetime bout with Muhammad Ali that would inspire the film Rocky (1976).A drama inspired by the life of heavyweight boxer Chuck Wepner, who had a once-in-a-lifetime bout with Muhammad Ali that would inspire the film Rocky (1976).
IMDb RATING
6.5/10
6.6K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Philippe Falardeau
  • Writers
    • Jeff Feuerzeig
    • Jerry Stahl
    • Michael Cristofer
  • Stars
    • Liev Schreiber
    • Elisabeth Moss
    • Ron Perlman
  • Director
    • Philippe Falardeau
  • Writers
    • Jeff Feuerzeig
    • Jerry Stahl
    • Michael Cristofer
  • Stars
    • Liev Schreiber
    • Elisabeth Moss
    • Ron Perlman
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 32User reviews
    • 75Critic reviews
    • 68Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Videos3

    Official Trailer
    Trailer 1:30
    Watch Official Trailer
    Chuck
    Clip 1:14
    Watch Chuck
    Chuck
    Clip 0:42
    Watch Chuck

    Photos19

    Liev Schreiber in Chuck (2016)
    Liev Schreiber in Chuck (2016)
    Liev Schreiber in Chuck (2016)
    Ron Perlman, Liev Schreiber, Elisabeth Moss, and Naomi Watts in Chuck (2016)
    Liev Schreiber, Elisabeth Moss, and Sadie Sink in Chuck (2016)
    Liev Schreiber in Chuck (2016)
    Chuck Premiere Los Angeles 2017
    Catherine Corcoran in Chuck (2016)
    Catherine Corcoran in Chuck (2016)
    Marissa Rose Gordon and Steven Shapiro at the premiere of The Bleeder.
    Liev Schreiber and Edward Carnevale in Chuck (2016)
    "The Announcer" in the movie Chuck.

    Top cast

    Edit
    Liev Schreiber
    Liev Schreiber
    • Chuck Wepner
    Elisabeth Moss
    Elisabeth Moss
    • Phyliss Wepner
    Ron Perlman
    Ron Perlman
    • Al Braverman
    Naomi Watts
    Naomi Watts
    • Linda
    Jim Gaffigan
    Jim Gaffigan
    • John
    Michael Rapaport
    Michael Rapaport
    • Don Wepner
    Pooch Hall
    Pooch Hall
    • Muhammad Ali
    Morgan Spector
    Morgan Spector
    • Sylvester Stallone
    Jason Jones
    Jason Jones
    • Arty
    William Hill
    William Hill
    • Paddy
    Wass Stevens
    Wass Stevens
    • Johnny Dicesare
    Kelvin Hale
    Kelvin Hale
    • Charlie Polite
    Megan Sikora
    Megan Sikora
    • Flo Wepner
    Emil Tonev
    • Fight Ref
    Georgia Ximenes Lifsher
    Georgia Ximenes Lifsher
    • Rachel
    Catherine Corcoran
    Catherine Corcoran
    • Sandy
    Sadie Sink
    Sadie Sink
    • Kimberly
    Melo Ludwig
    Melo Ludwig
    • Young Kimberly (6 Years Old)
    • Director
      • Philippe Falardeau
    • Writers
      • Jeff Feuerzeig
      • Jerry Stahl
      • Michael Cristofer
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Christina Hendricks was cast alongside Naomi Watts and Liev Schreiber back in 2011 when the project was announced. Hendricks dropped out while the film was stuck in development and eventually Elisabeth Moss replaced her.
    • Goofs
      Chuck Wepner served his prison time in East Jersey State Prison in Rahway, NJ, not Northern State Prison in Newark, NJ, as depicted in the movie. This is where he met Sylvester Stallone while filming "Lock Up" in 1989.
    • Quotes

      Chuck Wepner: What good was backing up gonna do? Look, my thing was this: I couldn't hit him, so I figured I'd wear him down with my face. It was working great for five or six rounds...

    • Connections
      Featured in The Cine-Masochist: CHUCK WEPNER VS ROCKY BALBOA (2021)

    User reviews32

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    7/10
    hit me
    Greetings again from the darkness. "That guy could take a punch." It's supposed to be a compliment and knowing nod to the machismo and toughness so valued in the world of boxing. Instead that trait is responsible for the two claims to fame for heavyweight boxer Chuck Wepner: he shockingly went 15 rounds (minus 17 seconds) against Muhammad Ali in 1975, and was the inspiration for Sylvester Stallone's Oscar winning movie Rocky.

    Director Philippe Falardeau (Monsieur Lazhar) and the four co-writers (Jeff Feuerzeig, Jerry Stahl, Michael Cristopher, Liev Schreiber) spend very little time in the boxing ring or with the usual training montages, and instead focus on how Wepner's ego and inability to handle fame affected his family, his health and his life. This is a portrait of Chuck the man, and it's at times more painful than the barrage of punches Ali landed in Round 15.

    Liev Schreiber is outstanding as 'The Bayonne Bleeder', the disparaging (but accurate) sobriquet that stuck with Wepner – thanks to his propensity to bleed in most bouts. His self-motivation to "Stay up Chuck" against Ali (played here by Schreiber's "Ray Donovan" brother Pooch Hall) is what became the foundation for Stallone's Rocky screenplay. There are a few terrific scenes with Wepner and Stallone (a spot on Morgan Spector) as Wepner desperately tries to latch onto the Rocky bandwagon, going so far as to introduce himself as "the real Rocky". It's tough for an actor to get Oscar consideration for a performance in the first half of the year, but Schreiber is worthy.

    It's not the first time we have seen the pitfalls of instant fame and celebrity status, and even though it's a true story, there is a familiarity to it that makes the plight of this lovable lug quite easy to relate to. Wepner's blue collar narcissism may have been the cause of much of the pain in his life, but it also allowed him to become a folk hero. His connection with Anthony Quinn in Requiem for a Heavyweight provides all the personality profile we require to grasp Wepner's make-up.

    The supporting cast is strong. Ron Perlman plays Wepner's manager/trainer Al Braverman, Jim Gaffigan is his hero-worshiping corner man and cocaine accomplice, Elisabeth Moss plays wrongly-done first wife Phyllis, Michael Rappaport is estranged brother John, and Naomi Watts (she and Schreiber ended their long-term relationship soon after filming) as his confidant and second wife Linda. Moss and Rappaport each have very strong scenes … scenes that remind us that these are real people and not part of some fairy tale.

    Director Falardeau delivers no shortage of 1970's cheese – wardrobe, facial hair, disco music, party drugs, and night clubs – but there is also enough humor to maintain balance: Wepner explains after the Ali fight how he tried to "wear him down with my face". By the end we aren't sure if Wepner was self-destructive or simply lacking in dependable counsel. Either way, the journey of self-discovery is even more interesting than the boxing career, and the film is punctuated with closing credit footage that provides viewers with a sense of relief. A tragic ending has been averted, and Chuck remains a local Bayonne, New Jersey resident – even if he's no longer a bleeder.
    helpful•14
    7
    • ferguson-6
    • May 4, 2017

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • May 5, 2017 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • The Bleeder
    • Filming locations
      • Sofia, Bulgaria
    • Production companies
      • Millennium Films
      • Mandalay Sports Media (MSM)
      • Campbell Grobman Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $320,725
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $34,565
      • May 7, 2017
    • Gross worldwide
      • $502,518
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      1 hour 38 minutes
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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