There is an interesting story to be told about Jem Belcher, the professional boxer from Bristol and champion of all England in the early years of the 19th century who became a working class hero and pop culture icon mentioned by Dickens and Conan Doyle. . This biopic is clearly a labor of love for its writer, producer and star Matt Hookings, himself the son of boxing champion David Pearce, the "Welsh Rocky."
The Hookings feature suggests that Belcher was the first star boxer, a pioneer of the modern sport, and speculates that he was even one of the first to wear gloves. But despite the film's historical interest, it plays like a Carry On movie without the jokes, and the way it's shot makes it sound like a coffee commercial. Russell Crowe rumbles, groans and smiles his way through the small role of Jem's mighty grandfather Jack Slack, whose gloveless exploits inspire the googly-eyed lad, and Jodhi May has the deeply ungrateful role of Jem's grieving mother. , who disapproves of his son's boxing destiny with a face like a wet Wednesday.
Director: Daniel Graham
Writer: Matt Hookings
Stars: Matt Hookings, Ray Winstone, Russell Crowe
Ray Winstone stars as Jem's pile driver, Bill, who ushers in modern-style training scenes and roadwork montages, while Marton Csokas is the creepy, dragging Lord Rushworth who throws a fancy party for Jem and Bill. The latter are suspicious of the bubbles in the wine Rushworth offers them, and their aristocratic host brays: “Something special from the antichrist in France; they call it cham-paagne…!” He offers to facilitate Jem's entry into London's lucrative sporting circles, but of course she is not his friend.
What is becoming increasingly apparent is that regardless of the era, the character, the politics, or any other fancy window dressing, a boxing movie will always be a boxing movie. It will have the plucky underdog, the grizzled veteran, the rise to glory, the seduction of fame, the fall from grace, and the heartwarming redemption. All of this was expected. What wasn't thought of were the more esoteric tropes of specific eras of boxing film: the comparison training montage (champion and underdog training under vastly different circumstances) and even the last-round montage of the final epic clash, packed with round counter. , countdown timer, and punishing beatings that no other human being could ever hope to take.
In fact, it's so derivative that there's almost nothing here that hasn't been ripped directly from some other boxing movie. The movie is called The Life of Jem Belcher, but it really isn't: At under 110 minutes, there's no time to really establish Belcher as anything more than a great fighter with dreams and ambitions. No, the entire story is about Belcher's real-life rise to become the youngest English boxing champion in history, a claim he holds to this day, some 220 years later. But because it's all about fighting, there's nothing of Belcher himself. All the other characters are almost a cameo, they are given very little screen time. And while that works for some (Berkoff is as gloriously insane as he's ever been, Csokas metaphorically twirls his mustache with the delight of Napoleon crossed with Don King, while Crowe is his usual frighteningly jovial and charmingly dangerous self), everyone the others are simply lost. into the mix, notably, poor Jodhi May as Belcher's long-suffering mother, characterized only by the fact that she gave birth to the film's leading man.
Watch Prizefighter: The Life of Jem Belcher 2022 Trailer
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