Movie Reviews
It is quite clear that Ron Howard has improved his directing talent over the past decade. We didn’t really see him shine until 1995’s “Apollo 13”, which proved he had ambition. That was when Opie’s name started showing up at the Oscars. Then in 2001, he got what he was looking for. “A Beautiful Mind” won Best Picture and Best Director. Deservedly so.
What struck me about how “Cinderella Man” was advertised was its release date. This is an Oscar-caliber film, and yet they decided to leave it here in June when all of us teenagers are going to see “Star Wars” and “Batman”. But I don’t think that Ron Howard is interested in box office gold so much as he is Oscar gold. With a film like this out with so many big budget flicks to its left and right, it stands out. It is a nice reward for those of us that take the time to watch it.
That is the simple reason why I so highly anticipated the release of “Cinderella Man”. It marks the reuniting of Howard and Russell Crowe, who exemplifies his characters. Here again, Crowe defies the laws of acting (pretending) and instead becomes who he is supposed to be.
In this case he is James J. Braddock, a boxer from the 1920s. Braddock is at the top of his game when the film opens. We see him winning fight after fight, knock out after knock out. His family is thriving. His wife (Renee Zellweger) and three children are happy.
Then Howard’s editor does something unique and surprising. Without directly cutting, we fade to sometime later. Now the depression has begun; the Braddock family is poor and growing poorer. But there is no end in sight because everyone is in the same boat.
A broken hand forces James out of boxing, perhaps for good. Now he is working at the docks, but even there they keep cutting shifts. At the front gate we see a man picking out merely nine people to work. Braddock is not always one of the nine.
Without spoiling the story, I want to have you understand that this is not a puppy-dog formula picture. You know the kind I’m talking about: when the going gets tough for a good man he almost loses all hope, then his cute little kids tell him he can do it, and so he triumphs against all odds simply because he is a good man. I dislike those movies; this is not one of them.
“Cinderella Man”, instead, is rife with realistic, absorbing dialogue. Crowe and Zellweger (both of which have an accomplished repertoire) share that dialogue with us only after processing it and understanding it. They share it only when it seems like they’d really say it.
Not only that, Howard has achieved boxing sequences that are gripping and brutal. They slightly remind me of how “Raging Bull” was shot. Both films used camera flash bulbs to heighten the presence of the press in the room. It also makes the fights just plain fun to watch. It’s safe to say that “Cinderella Man” is one of 2005’s more promising films. However, perhaps it is too pert of me to say that it’s Howard’s best film. ****