Last night I had the honor of being the guest of Grace Hill Media at a premier showing of the hot new movie Cinderella Man, starring outstanding actors Russell Crowe & Renee Zellweger.
When I arrived at the theater, to be honest, I wasn't thrilled with the idea of seeing a "boxing" movie, however, within the first few minutes of Cinderella Man I was drawn in by the outstanding story.
The movie is set primarily in the 1930's during the Great Depression and draws you into what it must have been like for hard working people to experience the loss of just about everything even though they were hard working.
I was captivated to see the love of a family where a father figure not only showed a tough side because of his boxing career, but also a very tender side as he gives his child his food to eat because she is still hungry.
Crowe did a superb job of conveying integrity, sensitivity and masculinity throughout the whole movie. Zellweger also gives an outstanding performance as a depression era wife who desires to please and support her husband, but also has a mind of her own.
However, one of the stand outs in this movie is the supporting actor, Paul Giamatti, who plays Crowe's manager Joe Gould. All throughout the film you see his character encouraging, Crowe's character, Jim Braddock, and even learn that he was hiding his own poverty in order to support and encourage someone he truly believes in, despite the boss hogs in the boxing industry.
Ron Howard did an outstanding job producing this film and bringing back to Hollywood and the public, a movie the whole family can enjoy.
The movie is rated PG-13 due to the violent boxing scenes and some explicit language including the use of the Lord's name being taken in vain. Parents would do well to accompany their children to this movie especially if they are under 13.
Go see the movie this weekend and bring some Kleenex.
Article comments
1 - Tan Hoang
Have you seen Michael Mann's Ali? How is Paul Giamatti's character compared to Jamie Foxx's character? Both play managers. I haven't seen Cinderella Mann, but I thought Foxx's performance in Ali was top notch.
2 - Stacy L. Harp
No, I haven't seen Ali, so I can't comment, but I think you'll enjoy Cinderella Man. :)
3 - Nicolette Rivers
Men in little shorts getting sweaty together. Awesome!