Summary
Boxer Billy Hope turns to trainer Tick Wills to help him get his life back on tracks after losing his wife in a tragic accident and to get his daughter back from child protection services.
The Champ!
Billy Hope is preparing for his big fight as he listens to music through his headphones in the changing rooms, taping his fist for protection and getting a final prep talk from his lovely wife Maureen Hope, saying "Don't get hit to much."
This kind of reminded me of the '8 Mile' scene where Eminem was in the bathroom preparing himself for his big rap battle, but obviously this scene was a lot different as Billy Hope had his boxing team and wife to help him. Plus what sort of last advice is that? "Don't get hit to much." Boxing is a contact sport Maureen, in case you didn't notice or maybe i just missed the funny ironic joke there.
He's now in the boxing ring screaming with a bloody face for self-motivation and to get the crowd roaring when a boxing glove hits him right in the face as we see Billy get out-boxed. His trainers and wife get frustrated to see him get hurt, but Billy finally starts to fight better in the next round and sees some opportunities to throw in some heavy punches to his opponent, eventually knocking him out to win the match,
I thought this scene showed us a lot about Billy's character and the fighting style he has, as he has no defense what so ever and basically gets the sh*t beaten out of him. I thought it was a good way to present the main character of the movie and i knew it was going to good movie to watch from then. I also loved how we see his face all bloody and cut as he screams towards the camera, to getting hit in the face by his opponent to show us how brutal boxing can be.
After The Fight
After Billy Hope's dramatic fight, his doctor gives him the all clear as in no fatal injuries accept from some cuts and bruises to his face. Maureen is worried as she can see him dribbling blood and slurring his words as he speaks to her, wiping the blood off his face with a towel.
Iv'e always wondered how boxers cope with the injuries from their previous fights and how their families cope with it also. I think this scene paints a good perspective on how some boxers would actually act and cope after their fights, i mean it must be hard sometimes and a real mental challenge for the boxer and even their family. If it was me boxing with injuries like Billy's, i'd want to go straight to bed and sleep, but saying that, its probably not a good idea to sleep straight away with a concussion to the head.
You see how worried Maureen is because before the fight she told him not to get hit to much and what does he do? He does the opposite. You see in her facial expression that she's tired in seeing him get hurt and you can see the extent of his injuries as she looks at one of the towels, which is covered in blood.
Billy Hope is preparing for his big fight as he listens to music through his headphones in the changing rooms, taping his fist for protection and getting a final prep talk from his lovely wife Maureen Hope, saying "Don't get hit to much."
This kind of reminded me of the '8 Mile' scene where Eminem was in the bathroom preparing himself for his big rap battle, but obviously this scene was a lot different as Billy Hope had his boxing team and wife to help him. Plus what sort of last advice is that? "Don't get hit to much." Boxing is a contact sport Maureen, in case you didn't notice or maybe i just missed the funny ironic joke there.
He's now in the boxing ring screaming with a bloody face for self-motivation and to get the crowd roaring when a boxing glove hits him right in the face as we see Billy get out-boxed. His trainers and wife get frustrated to see him get hurt, but Billy finally starts to fight better in the next round and sees some opportunities to throw in some heavy punches to his opponent, eventually knocking him out to win the match,
I thought this scene showed us a lot about Billy's character and the fighting style he has, as he has no defense what so ever and basically gets the sh*t beaten out of him. I thought it was a good way to present the main character of the movie and i knew it was going to good movie to watch from then. I also loved how we see his face all bloody and cut as he screams towards the camera, to getting hit in the face by his opponent to show us how brutal boxing can be.
After The Fight
After Billy Hope's dramatic fight, his doctor gives him the all clear as in no fatal injuries accept from some cuts and bruises to his face. Maureen is worried as she can see him dribbling blood and slurring his words as he speaks to her, wiping the blood off his face with a towel.
Iv'e always wondered how boxers cope with the injuries from their previous fights and how their families cope with it also. I think this scene paints a good perspective on how some boxers would actually act and cope after their fights, i mean it must be hard sometimes and a real mental challenge for the boxer and even their family. If it was me boxing with injuries like Billy's, i'd want to go straight to bed and sleep, but saying that, its probably not a good idea to sleep straight away with a concussion to the head.
You see how worried Maureen is because before the fight she told him not to get hit to much and what does he do? He does the opposite. You see in her facial expression that she's tired in seeing him get hurt and you can see the extent of his injuries as she looks at one of the towels, which is covered in blood.
Lets Go Home
Billy and Maureen are now presenting themselves at a boxing Gala as Billy talks about his past and present life to the people in-front of him, but when things end, one of the boxers who wants a shot at the championship belt, could't resist saying some taunting words to him and his wife as they try to leave the building.
Billy stops in his tracks when he hears him say stuff about his wife, with Maureen trying to pull him away saying, "Lets go home." The two boxers end up in a scrap with both of their teams getting involved and with one of them pulling out a gun. One of Billy's security guards manages to grab the person holding the gun, but that doesn't stop him from pulling the trigger with the bullet landing in Maureen.
If your'e a typical tear-jerker then this scene will have you sitting in floods of your own tears because it is brutally sad to watch his wife get shot as she stands in the distance out of the way of the scrap the two boxers were having. That's the saddest part to me, because she was trying to stop Billy from getting into a fight and she gets shot because of his actions and ends up dying in Billy's arms.
Rock Bottom
With the death of his wife, Billy thinks it's time to get revenge on the person who shot his wife, as he goes around the suburbs with a hand pistol and knocks at the killers apartment. The assailants wife (Rita Ora) answers the door as Billy pretends to have some money for him and pulls out his gun. As he pulls out the gun, he sees the women's child and has some second thoughts about taking his revenge out on his assailants wife.
You know at this point i Billy's life that he's certainly hit rock bottom because he's forgetting about the consequences he will face if he actually went through in killing his wife's killer or even the killers wife. I thought he was being a little bit too selfish as he's only thinking about himself and revenge, as where he should be thinking about and looking after his daughter.
If none of you know who Rita Ora is, she's a very popular singer/song writer in the UK and i was very surprised to see her appear in this movie, especially playing the role of a drug addict. I thought it was quite funny to see her take on this role and she did an alright job, as we see her beg continuously for drugs off Billy, even after he pulled a gun out on her in-front of her child.
With the death of his wife, Billy thinks it's time to get revenge on the person who shot his wife, as he goes around the suburbs with a hand pistol and knocks at the killers apartment. The assailants wife (Rita Ora) answers the door as Billy pretends to have some money for him and pulls out his gun. As he pulls out the gun, he sees the women's child and has some second thoughts about taking his revenge out on his assailants wife.
You know at this point i Billy's life that he's certainly hit rock bottom because he's forgetting about the consequences he will face if he actually went through in killing his wife's killer or even the killers wife. I thought he was being a little bit too selfish as he's only thinking about himself and revenge, as where he should be thinking about and looking after his daughter.
If none of you know who Rita Ora is, she's a very popular singer/song writer in the UK and i was very surprised to see her appear in this movie, especially playing the role of a drug addict. I thought it was quite funny to see her take on this role and she did an alright job, as we see her beg continuously for drugs off Billy, even after he pulled a gun out on her in-front of her child.
Aftermath's First Fight
After being conned into signing a new contract to make some money to keep his house, Billy goes into his next fight unprepared and the intention of losing the fight. Billy gets knocked around the ring with every punch landing on him and bloodier than ever. In the next round of his fight, Billy puts his guard down to let his opponent finish him off and the referee stops the match, but Billy tells him not to and headbutts the referee for stopping the fight.
What a brutal way to lose your very first boxing match to a underdog and i bet you Billy would of won if he was up for the challenge, but you knew he couldn't of won it with out the support of Maureen by his side.
What else was Billy supposed to do to raise money to keep a roof over his daughters head? I was pretty angry how his promoter (50 cent) took advantage of his situation to make more money for himself and knowing that Billy wasn't ready to go into his next fight so closely to the death of his wife. The only thing that bothered me about this scene was, if he knew he was bankrupt and his house would be up for possession, why go into a fight to carelessly lose? It made no sense to me what so ever!
Losing Fights And Losing Custody
A New Gym
After being conned into signing a new contract to make some money to keep his house, Billy goes into his next fight unprepared and the intention of losing the fight. Billy gets knocked around the ring with every punch landing on him and bloodier than ever. In the next round of his fight, Billy puts his guard down to let his opponent finish him off and the referee stops the match, but Billy tells him not to and headbutts the referee for stopping the fight.
What a brutal way to lose your very first boxing match to a underdog and i bet you Billy would of won if he was up for the challenge, but you knew he couldn't of won it with out the support of Maureen by his side.
What else was Billy supposed to do to raise money to keep a roof over his daughters head? I was pretty angry how his promoter (50 cent) took advantage of his situation to make more money for himself and knowing that Billy wasn't ready to go into his next fight so closely to the death of his wife. The only thing that bothered me about this scene was, if he knew he was bankrupt and his house would be up for possession, why go into a fight to carelessly lose? It made no sense to me what so ever!
Losing Fights And Losing Custody
 |
| Credit to Ryushare.co
Being thrown into another but very different battle is Billy as he tries to convince the court of law that he is a fit father to look after his own daughter, but Billy brutally told that he has been showing "Alarming and dangerous behavior." He is also told that his daughter will be put into family services for the next 30 days so he can prove to the court he can be a fit parent once again.
When you thought it couldn't get any worse for Billy and his daughter, his life is literally been tipped upside down and thrown against a wall to be smashed to smithereens! Can you imagine how painful and hard that must be for a person, especially after losing your wife and losing your championship belt which basically fed his family.
The heartbreaking part about this scene was when he tries to give his daughter one last hug before she is taken away but the police stop them from hugging each other and drags his daughter away to the family services, resulting in Billy getting arrested for trying to hug his own daughter. Imagine how frustrating that must of been, i know it's only a movie but can you imagine how sh*tty that must be!
|
Since losing his daughter, Billy turns to one of his old friends he hasn't seen since the death of Maureen. His friend gives him a lift to one of the suburban gyms called 'Wills Gym.' Billy enters the gym to sit on a chair to wait to speak to the trainer, but he walks straight past Billy with no eye contact what so ever. Billy follows Tick Will into his office asking for a place to train and work, but Billy doesn't get the warm welcoming he was hoping for.
What has he got to lose right? Why not try and convince a trainer to train him and give him a new job, even if he is a mess right now, but Billy doesn't get the warm welcoming from Tick Wills and offers him a cleaning job which Billy declines, because he thinks so high of himself and is to stubborn to admit defeat.
I like how Billy tells Tick that the hardest fighter he ever had was the one that Tick trained, saying that he actually lost that fight and it was paid off so Billy would win it. This tells us that Will must of been a great trainer since Billy thought he actually lost the fight and wants to train with him so he can get back to the top and get his daughter back.
Visitation
Billy has tried his damn hardest with his daughter at visitations and she's finally able to sit down and play a game of scrabble with him on her own terms, but as they play scrabble she asks him "Can we just get out of here?" But Billy tells her the harsh truth of not being able to take her away for another 30 days till the next court trial. Leila (his daughter) starts to break down as he tells her he's going to fight again and won't be able to take her to the fight, screaming and crying as she gets dragged away by her support officer.
I was happy for Billy to finally spend sometime with his daughter after numerous failed attempts of visitations and you knew he took Tick advice when he told Billy "Let her hate you," so that the healing process can move forward on her own terms. So Billy had to wait a while to get his game of scrabble and all that changed as soon as he told her the bead news!
I was literally stunned on how good the acting was on both their parts in this scene, specially by the daughter as she got very emotional towards her father and even hitting him in the process. I was gob smacked as she threw in the first slap, but then came the second, 3rd and then the fourth. This gave it a little more edge and grit, which i think most viewers would enjoy.
Billy has tried his damn hardest with his daughter at visitations and she's finally able to sit down and play a game of scrabble with him on her own terms, but as they play scrabble she asks him "Can we just get out of here?" But Billy tells her the harsh truth of not being able to take her away for another 30 days till the next court trial. Leila (his daughter) starts to break down as he tells her he's going to fight again and won't be able to take her to the fight, screaming and crying as she gets dragged away by her support officer.
I was happy for Billy to finally spend sometime with his daughter after numerous failed attempts of visitations and you knew he took Tick advice when he told Billy "Let her hate you," so that the healing process can move forward on her own terms. So Billy had to wait a while to get his game of scrabble and all that changed as soon as he told her the bead news!
I was literally stunned on how good the acting was on both their parts in this scene, specially by the daughter as she got very emotional towards her father and even hitting him in the process. I was gob smacked as she threw in the first slap, but then came the second, 3rd and then the fourth. This gave it a little more edge and grit, which i think most viewers would enjoy.
Charity Fight Night
This might as well be the first fight of Bill's career as we see him with a new trainer, new team and a improved boxing movement as Billy has been taught the art of 'Defense.' Billy boxers his non professional opponent under a roof of a church and shocks most people with his performance, blocking punches, avoiding punches and being more precise with his own punches to his opponent. Tick tells him to keep jabbing and moving his head to avoid punches and whilst takes this on board, Billy finally knocks out his opponent.
The major thing i noticed about this scene was how non-bloody Billy's face was and this told me a lot on how well he has improved on his fighting technique, as he's now learnt how to defend himself from his opponents punches. I also noticed how calm and passive about his fighting, listening to everything his trainer was telling him to do and it finally paid off for him!
After the fight Billy is approached by his old manager/Promoter (50 Cent) and told that he can have a shot at the world title belt that he used to have himself, fighting the man who was involved in getting Billy's wife killed and this made me a bit agitated as his old manager is trying to slime some more money off him, only because he saw him win a charity match.
Can you imagine how big of a fight that would be in real life? It would be huge!...And Billy is told by Tick that he won't train him, saying "I don't train pro fighters." What a bummer!
This might as well be the first fight of Bill's career as we see him with a new trainer, new team and a improved boxing movement as Billy has been taught the art of 'Defense.' Billy boxers his non professional opponent under a roof of a church and shocks most people with his performance, blocking punches, avoiding punches and being more precise with his own punches to his opponent. Tick tells him to keep jabbing and moving his head to avoid punches and whilst takes this on board, Billy finally knocks out his opponent.
The major thing i noticed about this scene was how non-bloody Billy's face was and this told me a lot on how well he has improved on his fighting technique, as he's now learnt how to defend himself from his opponents punches. I also noticed how calm and passive about his fighting, listening to everything his trainer was telling him to do and it finally paid off for him!
After the fight Billy is approached by his old manager/Promoter (50 Cent) and told that he can have a shot at the world title belt that he used to have himself, fighting the man who was involved in getting Billy's wife killed and this made me a bit agitated as his old manager is trying to slime some more money off him, only because he saw him win a charity match.
Can you imagine how big of a fight that would be in real life? It would be huge!...And Billy is told by Tick that he won't train him, saying "I don't train pro fighters." What a bummer!
Getting His Daughter Back
After some very long months of waiting and trying to prove to the court of justice, Billy is finally allowed to see his daughter and take her home to his very small apartment. The two of them bond and talk about Maureen, visiting her grave in the process. Billy also allows his daughter to finally watch him fight the big redemption match he was promised by his ex manager, telling her she can only watch from the changing rooms on TV.
It was good to see the two of them bond once again, seeming like they were their old self's before Maureen died and even letting his daughter watch his big fight. That's a big step for them both, now that Billy has no one to watch him fight, so it kind of makes sense for him to allow this to happen if you ask me. What would you guys do? Would you let your children watch you beat the crap out of some guy for money?
I'd also like to point out how moving and emotional the scene was when they both went to visit Maureen's grave, with an outstanding performance by the daughter as she gets very emotional while Billy holds her tight.
After some very long months of waiting and trying to prove to the court of justice, Billy is finally allowed to see his daughter and take her home to his very small apartment. The two of them bond and talk about Maureen, visiting her grave in the process. Billy also allows his daughter to finally watch him fight the big redemption match he was promised by his ex manager, telling her she can only watch from the changing rooms on TV.
It was good to see the two of them bond once again, seeming like they were their old self's before Maureen died and even letting his daughter watch his big fight. That's a big step for them both, now that Billy has no one to watch him fight, so it kind of makes sense for him to allow this to happen if you ask me. What would you guys do? Would you let your children watch you beat the crap out of some guy for money?
I'd also like to point out how moving and emotional the scene was when they both went to visit Maureen's grave, with an outstanding performance by the daughter as she gets very emotional while Billy holds her tight.
The Redemption Fight
It's fight night and Billy enters the arena with no entrance music and with his daughter watching from his changing room with her support worker. Billy is named the underdog of the fight and both boxers become equal opponents after they get the better of each other towards the end of the fight and as soon as Billy's eye gets cut, he is told to "Southpaw his ass."
I loved how Billy changed up his technique as soon as his eye got cut open, as he hurdles his left shoulder over his chin to give him more protection from his opponents punches. You would probably never see this in a real boxing match and that's what made it unique to watch and as soon as he did this technique, he was becoming a better fighter throughout the fight.
The best part about this scene was the knockout, obviously!! It was good because Jake Gylenhall made it look so realistic as he knocks him out, but then tries to punch him again and misses, like actual boxers would do as they try and swing one last punch in before the referee gets in the way. Small details like that puts the cherry on top and makes it worth while to watch.
Conclusion
I don't think i have watched a boxing movie since the last Rocky movie and that wasn't as good as the old ones, which made me think if this movie was worth my time in watching it and it definitely was! I thought Southpaw was unique as it wasn't all about boxing, but about a different fight which Billy had to endure as he tried to fight for his daughter.
The choice of actors for the roles was spot on and all of them capitalised their roles perfectly throughout the movie
The overall movie was emotional, surprising, gritty and funny at times and these characteristics made it the perfect boxing drama to watch, making us see a different perspective of boxers and how one man endures the cruelty of life.
Southpaw Soundtrack
Discussion
It's fight night and Billy enters the arena with no entrance music and with his daughter watching from his changing room with her support worker. Billy is named the underdog of the fight and both boxers become equal opponents after they get the better of each other towards the end of the fight and as soon as Billy's eye gets cut, he is told to "Southpaw his ass."
I loved how Billy changed up his technique as soon as his eye got cut open, as he hurdles his left shoulder over his chin to give him more protection from his opponents punches. You would probably never see this in a real boxing match and that's what made it unique to watch and as soon as he did this technique, he was becoming a better fighter throughout the fight.
The best part about this scene was the knockout, obviously!! It was good because Jake Gylenhall made it look so realistic as he knocks him out, but then tries to punch him again and misses, like actual boxers would do as they try and swing one last punch in before the referee gets in the way. Small details like that puts the cherry on top and makes it worth while to watch.
Conclusion
I don't think i have watched a boxing movie since the last Rocky movie and that wasn't as good as the old ones, which made me think if this movie was worth my time in watching it and it definitely was! I thought Southpaw was unique as it wasn't all about boxing, but about a different fight which Billy had to endure as he tried to fight for his daughter.
The choice of actors for the roles was spot on and all of them capitalised their roles perfectly throughout the movie
The overall movie was emotional, surprising, gritty and funny at times and these characteristics made it the perfect boxing drama to watch, making us see a different perspective of boxers and how one man endures the cruelty of life.
Southpaw Soundtrack
Discussion
- What did you think of the overall movie?
- What was your favourite scenes? & Why?
- What was your least favourite scenes? & Why?
- What did you think of the actors/characters?
- What did you think about the story line?
0 comments:
Post a Comment