Boxing is seemingly the only form of hand-to-hand combat Hollywood consistently tries to take seriously. Maybe it’s because boxing defines the American spirit the way that wushu defines the Chinese spirit. Like bullfighting, it’s a controversial sport that simultaneously creates heroes amid great moments of human drama and pummels fighters’ bodies and minds irreversibly into pulp in a modern form of gladiatorial spectacle fueled by big money. Say what you will about the real world of boxing, but in the movies it’s the human drama that delivers the knockout and such is the case with Ron Howard’s finest film to date, that was sadly overshadowed by star Russell Crowe’s off screen drama.

CINDERELLA MAN is a largely faithful biopic of Depression-era heavyweight champion Jim Braddock, played by rugged leading man Russell Crowe. What sets this film apart from highly-regarded boxing flicks ROCKY, RAGING BULL, ALI, and MILLION DOLLAR BABY is its subject matter. Braddock was not only an underdog like Rocky Balboa, a fierce competitor like Jake La Motta, a champion of the people like Muhammad Ali, or someone who never gave up despite heavy odds like Maggie Fitzgerald. He was also a man of integrity who put his family before pride and the pursuit of success during one of the darkest periods in American history. It’s a story that flies in defiance to modern thinking (or lack thereof), which is dominated by the pursuit of material gain, self gratification and notoriety.

Despite early success as a boxer and a record of having never been knocked out, several injuries including a broken right hand and their impact on his increasingly poor ring performances cause Braddock to lose his boxing license just as the stock market crashes in 1929 and the Great Depression (1929-1939) begins. Unable to earn a living as a boxer in New Jersey, Braddock joins thousands of unemployed as he struggles to provide for his wife Mae (Renee Zellweger) and three children by daily looking for menial labor, grudgingly accepting government handouts and standing in breadlines. He even resorts to selling his boxing equipment and asking his old associates for help in paying his heating bill during the winter. But his manager Joe Gould (Paul Giamatti) never gives up on his old friend and within a few years arranges to have Jim return to fill in for another boxer. Out of shape and forced to wear borrowed gear, Braddock still manages an upset victory that sets him on a course to fight the charismatic, yet brutal Max Baer for the heavyweight championship of the world.

In FAR AND AWAY, Howard toyed with boxing by having Tom Cruise portray an Irish immigrant who makes an early living in America by fighting. But in CINDERELLA MAN, he really takes the subject on entirely and with the same kind of unpretentiousness and realism he brought forth in APOLLO 13. This is balanced with an equal interest in telling the story of the Depression. In fact, the deleted scenes provided on the DVD releases are indication that Howard almost got carried away with the event. Yet its appropriate, for how Braddock handles himself during the Depression is crucial to defining his character.

This is the second collaboration between Howard and Russell Crowe after A BRILLIANT MIND and both men really seem to be in tune. Crowe slips effortlessly into the role and is wholeheartedly believable as both a champion boxer and standup family man. Prior to shooting, he spent months training for the role with world class trainer Angelo Dundee, who also provided consultation for this film and for ALI.

The boxing matches themselves are excellent and really evoke that early 20th-century style of boxing that appears more rigid than what spectators will see today. But at the same time, they’re kept exciting by how they’re filmed and edited. Howard favors snappy editing, while DP Salvatore Totino produces slightly unpolished camera work mixed with intentionally drab colors and lighting. As we’re dealing with heavyweight fighting, a lot of the matches are more about enduring than anything else and Howard captures this element well. To enhance the two bone breaks Braddock suffers Howard uses the common, quick x-ray insert supplemented by that nauseating cracking sound, but it works like a charm. Other minor injuries such as cuts and bruises are not as well highlighted, but realistically applied.

Coordinating these matches fell to experienced Hollywood professionals Steve Lucescu (RESIDENT EVIL: APOCALYPSE) and Nick Powell (THE BOURNE IDENTITY), while Angelo Dundee coached Paul Giamatti on what to say to Crowe as his ringside coach. What develops with this layout is a fascinating and seemingly authentic look at the strategies of boxing and the close relationship between coach and boxer. Giamatti comes off as a little too bland for my tastes in his role, but still plays it well. Together, he and Crowe take the audience into the mindset of the fights and this really adds to the already realistic look of the sparring.

Craig Bierko plays Braddock’s main opponent Max Baer and does a terrific job of it too. He trained with Hector Rocca for three months at Gleason’s Gym and did some additional preparation for the role on his own time. The whole film rests on this climatic fight for the world heavyweight title and it’s as much a physical contest as a clash of two contrasting personalities. As the current champion, Baer is a flamboyant and arrogant fighter, who plays to the audience. As the comeback contender, Braddock is sincere and doggedly determined to keep food on his family’s table. These traits immediately come out in each fighter’s technique. Howard basically takes this historic match and gives it a fresh voice.

The majority of the film is not focused on Braddock’s boxing matches, but rather on his struggles outside the ring during the Depression. Most of them reinforce his character. Such things as Braddock’s insistence on returning his welfare income once he starts making money again almost seem like a Hollywood contrivance. But by all accounts, this and other aspects of his upstanding character were true. This is what really makes the film great. Like ALI, we’re dealing with an intriguing personality who is larger than life, although in a vastly different way.

Renee Zellweger is one of my least favorite actresses, whose overacting in CHICAGO and COLD MOUNTAIN was grating on the nerves. Yet she turns in a decent performance as Braddock’s supportive wife Mae. She’s more subdued and natural, It’s a little hard to believe this couple could get along as well as they appear to during hard times, but that’s what makes this story different. These are not the flawed characters that generally make for such great drama. They’re both doing the best they can and for Howard to be able to keep this interesting is a credit to his ability as a director.

Actually, Howard does add a fictional element of drama in the character of Mike Wilson (Paddy Considine), an unemployed stockbroker Braddock befriends while performing day labor. Wilson is the drunk, reactionary voice of a disgruntled America who is unable to cope with the Depression. Another scene that was ultimately deleted shows a laborer pulling out a gun when he’s not given work. Luckily, Howard did downplay this somewhat as Braddock’s comeback story works well enough on its own without stereotypical contrivance.

The recreation of Depression-era New York is impressive, not that I’d necessarily recognize the place. Yet limited computer backdrops, excellent attention to detail in sets and costumes, and selective shooting in Toronto really puts the viewer into the era.

Jim Braddock was dubbed the “Cinderella Man” for his rise from poverty to world boxing champion. For struggling right along with the rest of America during the Depression, only to make a historic comeback, he became an inspiration for many people at a time when hope was in short supply. It’s a gratuitous feel-good story about endurance, integrity and family values overcoming great odds. This may not be original or flashy, but it’s a great story that deserved to be told and was done so extremely well.

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