I've been waiting to see
Southpaw since it first came out because I'm a huge fight fan and of course a huge fan of the
Rocky series. I really wasn't sure what I would be getting with
Southpaw. The Trailer kind of painted a picture of something more along the lines of
Raging Bull. But the movie actually pulls a lot from
Rocky III. It's unmistakable. A Champion living the good life with his wife and kid in a mansion. Money to burn. He has it all and then tradegy strikes. He loses his championship belt, the house and his daughter as
Jake Gyllenhaal's character spirals out of control in trying to deal with his personal loss. This is where the movie tends to differ from
Rocky III because it does get dark and is more about character redemption in making himself a better person so that he can get his girl back, played by
Oona Laurence who is fantastic. So are
Forest Whitaker and
Rachel McAdams. The movie is riddle with the typical boxing cliches and it does pull bits and pieces from the other
Rocky films, but I don't care. Still a great film that actually had me misty eyed 3 times throughout, which I wasn't expecting at all. Definitely worth a
Rent.
Jake's transformation is astounding.