Jack Huston, best known for his roles in TV’s Boardwalk Empire and Fargo, goes behind the camera to direct this portrait of a fighter.
Michael Pitt stars as Mike, a boxer given a shot at a big money fight ten years after a driving-under-influence crash that put him in prison. On the day of the bout, he confronts his personal demons and attempts to atone his past.
The life of a downtrodden fighter has been explored on film too many times to count, including in the incredible The Wrestler with Mickey Rourke, but this is no sloppy rip-off. Using graceful storytelling, the filmmaker takes a more tender approach to well-worn themes, concentrating on the humanity behind the fighter rather than the road to the climactic fight.
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It throws an emotional haymaker in the form of Pitt, who is wonderful in the lead. Scarred internally and externally, each interaction has a wonderful level of sincerity; his performance is essentially a meditation on self-forgiveness.
Ron Perlman is perfectly cast as Mike’s trainer, while the great Joe Pesci is heartbreaking as his abusive father. Huston may include some unnecessary flourishes, such as superfluous flashbacks, but when he allows his actors to let loose it’s nothing short of magical.
Day Of The Fight is an unpolished indie gem that, to use one last boxing cliché, punches well above its weight.
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