TOP TEN FILMS ABOUT BOXING

The official top ten boxing movie list of the Blackeyed View

I have been wanting to expand on other topics with just the right touch of boxing added to stay true to the core of this blog but I have to admit that lately boxing has been coming at me from all sides. From the recent mega fight involving Mayweather and Mosley, to my recent interview (to be posted at a later date) with Nicaraguan wild man Ricardo Mayorga, not to mention that I have returned to my boxing gym last week and have been getting some rounds in. And so it was that once again on the treadmill (where a lot of my best ideas are given genesis) I was thinking about the movie Raging Bull a modern masterpiece directed by the great Martin Scorsese, in particular the opening scene in which the star Robert Deniro was jumping in place in slow motion while this cool musical score was playing. I like to use imagery like that to push myself during my workouts you see and it made me remember what a great film it was. Was it the best movie about boxing that I ever saw was my next question and that forced me to comprise a list. I love lists about best this or best that, any list entertains me, top ten best soups, best movies, best dressed, etc. So I thought it would be fun to come up with the Blackeyed View's top ten best boxing films of all times. I will start in descending order.

10. Don King: Only in America (1997) : This film was made for TV by HBO where it was aired and was not shown in theaters. It focused on the rise of famous boxing promoter Don King played by Ving Rhaimes. In this film Rhaimes shows his full range as an actor as he tackles a character that can go from pompous huckster, to preacher, to saint and quickly to devil in the time that a flipped coin takes to land. Many boxing greats are covered in this film including the likes of Muhammad Ali and Larry Holmes.

9. Million Dollar Baby (2004) : Directing and starring the legendary Clint Eastwood along with the Hillary Swank who took the Oscar for best actress for this movie. This movie vividly showed the bond that can form between fighter and trainer when they work closely together, in this case Swank the fighter and Eastwood the cantankerous old trainer who has been burned before by other fighters. Its a tear jerker and definitely not to be viewed by those who are experiencing suicidal thoughts. But an excellent, excellent film none the less.

8. Fat City (1972) : This little known movie directed by John Huston adapted from the novel Fat City by Leonard Gardner starred a young Stacy Keach as a past his prime fighter struggling to make ends meet during one of the many rough patches in the history of this country. He comes to grips with the one sided nature of his relationship with his former manager played by Nicholas Colasanto (the Coach for all you CHEERS fans) and encounters a young boxer played by Jeff Bridges (forever to be known to me as the Dude from the Big Lebowski) who is a reflection to him of his own lost promise. Its a gritty film that will suck you in, enjoy the music of this clip...

7. Diggstown (1992) : This film has been described as Rocky meets the Sting as con man James Woods enlists the aid of a former boxer "Honey Boy" Roy Palmer played by Louis Gossett Jr. to take down local big shot Bruce Dern, placing a huge bet that Palmer can defeat ten men in 24 hours. This movie has a little bit of everything from comedy to drama, action and for sure a stellar cast including former heavyweight boxers Randal "Tex' Cobb and Alex Garcia.

6. On the Waterfront (1954) : This movie won all kinds of awards and stars Hollywood royalty Marlon Brando as a faded mob controlled boxer asked to stand up against the mob and his own brother by a neighborhood priest played by Karl Mulden. This is where one of the most iconic lines in movie history is uttered by Brando's character; " I coulda been somebody, I coulda been a contender."

5. Somebody up there likes me (1956) : I saw a lot of black and white movies in my youth because back then the networks still aired them, for some reason they would rather air the same episode of Saved By the Bell then any classic black and white films or shows nowadays. This movie was the screen bio of the life of hall of fame boxer Rocky Graziano played by the great Paul Newman and gave the viewer a chance to experience the backdrop behind one of the greatest boxing rivalries of all time Graziano vs Tony Zale.




4. Rocky 2 (1979) : This is where Rocky wins! Starring Sylvester Stallone in the title character as forces beyond his control lead him back to the ring to face world heavyweight champ Apollo Creed in a fight for his future, his family, and his life. Who doesn't get behind Rocky in this one, who? Who doesn't get inspired to train when you hear the Rocky theme music? Rocky! Rocky! Rocky!



3. The Champ (1979) : Long before ET The Extra Terrestrial had the children of the 80's crying in their movie theater seats ("don't die ET!") this movie cracked open the waterworks on anyone who saw the ending scene of this film starring Jon Voight as a boxer during a time when believe it or not he was considered a sex symbol and little Ricky Schroeder, the cute little blond haired boy who would go on to star in his own TV show Silver Spoons, his son who he fights to keep custody of as hard as he fights in the ring. To my memory this film contains the saddest scene that I ever saw and you got to remember that I was a child when I saw it.




2. Raging Bull (1980) : The Goodfellas of boxing movies. You take Scorsese, Deniro, and Joe Pesci and you get gold every time. This portrayal of the life of hall of fame middleweight champ Jake Lamotta is a study of a man battling inner demons with the boxing world in the 50's and 60's as the setting. Lamotta himself was brought in as a consultant to the film. As said before a modern masterpiece. Here is the clip that was on my mind while I was on the treadmill today.




1. Rocky (1976) : What else would the Blackeyed View pick as its top boxing film of all time but Rocky. The ultimate underdog story. This film is a testament to the human spirit that carries so many lessons within such as making the best out of life's opportunities, never giving up, redemption, and second chances. It has the best musical score out of any of the boxing films on this list or any other and it was no fluke as it won Academy awards for best picture and best director and made an Oscar nominee out of Sylvester Stallone for best actor and best written screenplay. This movie stands the test of time and will do so for generations to come.




Honorable mentions:

TYSON (2009) the documentary of the former baddest man on the planet is a compelling view in which Mike Tyson bares his soul and forces some to reassess their original opinion of the man.

Girlfight (2000) is the movie debut of Michelle Rodriguez in the story of a young woman finding haven within the confines of the ring from her abusive father at home.

ALI (2001) had bad timing for me, as most of the material in this film was covered ad naseum in the many biopics, sports specials, and documentaries including the excellent When We Were Kings during the years leading up to this film. Despite strong performances by Will Smith and Jamie Fox this film did not offer anything new for boxing fans to get excited about.

Cinderella Man (2005)the story of James Braddock had a great cast in Russel Crow, Paul Giamatti, and Renee Zellwiger but Giamatti was not convincing enough for me, kind of forced his character. But where the film loses major points for me as a boxing fan is in its portrayal of former champ Max Baer as boxer who enjoyed the fact that he caused the in ring deaths of several boxers. Anybody who knows boxing will tell you that no boxer ever wants to kill another fighter. Its the furthest thing from their minds and no boxer who ever killed another would ever brag about it.

Well there you have it my pick for top ten best boxing films of all time. I welcome your comments, disagreements and for you to share your own top ten list of boxing films.