Inclubabu
Plot so thin, it passes unnoticed.
GetPapa
Far from Perfect, Far from Terrible
Huievest
Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.
Sienna-Rose Mclaughlin
The movie really just wants to entertain people.
cricketbat
The Fighter isn't your average boxing movie. This film features an interesting look into family ties and their importance and impact. Christian Bale gives a very impressive performance as Dicky Eklund - I had to keep reminding myself that this was the same guy who plays Batman. This film takes a while to get going, and it feels a lot longer than it is, but it's still very well made and deserving of praise.
jonnieharris
Magnificently engaging from the get go, an unparalleled performance from Christian bale and the controversial tale of the Eklund brothers presented in a deliberate, sincere manner secures The Fighters position as one of the greatest biographical films in cinematic history. Oscar recognition thoroughly deserved, indisputably appreciated by all film enthusiasts.
Cirja Onisim
This movie was the last movie on my 2011 Oscars highlights list to watch and it stars a stellar cast and tells the story of Micky Ward and how he tried to rise up to boxing glory just like his brother once did.Firstly this movie is filled with fantastic performances. From Wahlberg's very underrated performance to Amy Adams' wonderful portrayal of Charlene and to Christian Bale's superb and crazy acting. To this day that is one of Christian Bale's best performances and I understood why he got the Oscar in 2011. This was a very crazy performance but as the movie shows the real Dicky person by the end, a very accurate portrayal of this interesting character. Wahlberg's performance is one of the most underrated things in this movie. He was calm and natural and realistic for the most part of the movie. Seeing him not getting nominated was weird and seeing Melissa Leo winning best actress was even weirder. The story is very true to the actual fact although some times it can be seen that it's been hollywoodized with periods where the hero is beaten up and then miraculously wins somehow. But that is done in a very fine way that made me close my eyes and say "yeah... it's ok!" compared to how the rest of the story unfolds. And really that would be my biggest gripe with the movie that sometimes the story gets somewhat hollywood typical and the boxing gets less real for more entertainment value, but that didn't took away too much from the quality of the movie. The story is very dramatic and very surprising and satisfying at times. There are lessons about redemption about rising up to big challenges and about trying to get everyone to support you the best they can while also emphasizing on how you should treasure everyone around you and take the best from everyone. This is a very motivational movie and a very realistic and well made movie with a great direction and superb cinematography that imitates the aura of television boxing very well. The music is just what you would need in this movie not being too sentimental and not too weird or unfitting for some sentimental moments, but gets the right balance between them. In conclusion: Great movie with fantastic performances, great story, great directing and powerful messages. One of 2010's best movies along with The King's Speech, Black Swan and Inception. 9/10
sol-
On the rise to fame and success, a young boxer must decide whether to continue training with his family or seek professional training and management elsewhere in this sports drama based on true events. Mark Wahlberg is solid as the conflicted boxer in question and Amy Adams does well cast-against-type as his foul-mouthed bartender girlfriend, but is Christian Bale who steals every scene he is in as Wahlberg's older brother. A former boxing legend himself, Bale has delusions of grandeur and believes that the TV crew who have recently arrived to film him are making a documentary about his long awaited comeback when in reality they are making a film about his descent into heroine addiction. The overall film fascinatingly follows this structure too, opening with a lot of focus on Bale, only for Wahlberg to be eventually revealed as the true star (what a great metaphor for Bale's character coming to realise that not everything is about him). Melissa Leo also gets quite a bit of screen time as the brothers' overbearing mother, however, the rest of the family are disappointingly barely fleshed out all, including Jack McGee as Wahlberg's father, who could have been quite interesting given that he actually sides with Adams about his son's career. As for the sisters, they are all interchangeable stereotypes. This is, however, principally a film about the brothers and their every interaction is compelling. The end credits are also worth watching here for appearances by the brothers whose lives the film was based on - Dicky and Micky Ward.