cinderellaman

Rarely do I tear up during movies. In only two that I can recall have the eyes watered. Oddly
enough, those films were “Patriot Games” and “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.”
Don’t ask me to explain why. I have no idea. Upon seeing “Cinderella Man,” I experienced the third
such film to evoke that emotion within me, and for much more poignant reasons.

It’s little wonder to me that this film is being ignored by the public at large. This is an inspiring and
moral story of an honorable man who lays everything on the line for his family. A lot of people
aren't interested in such stories anymore. They’d rather see something fiery and jaded likely.

Russell Crowe, in so far the best role of his career, plays historical boxer Jim Braddock. He’s a
relatively successful fighter before the Great Depression and a broken hand send him out of the
boxing world. With his wife, played beautifully by Renee Zellweger, and their three children,
Braddock faces the hardships of abject poverty. He promises to his son that he will never send
them away in the face of being poor, no matter what, even though he has no idea how to save his
children from starving.

Drama has rarely been more powerful than watching a man like Braddock work on the docks with a
broken hand just to bring a few cents home to feed and shelter his children. A stroke of luck and a
dedicated manager, played by Paul Giamatti (“Saving Private Ryan”), bring him back to the ring for
a novelty bout that turns into an unexpected victory for the down and out boxer. Suddenly, the poor
and average of Depression-era America who have seen Braddock stand next to them in bread lines
and relief offices see a man rise from the gutter to defy the odds. What has inspired him? In the
film, a reporter asks him what he is fighting so hard for. His answer: “Milk.”

The relationship between Crowe and Zellweger feels absolutely authentic. They love one another,
but Zellweger doesn’t want her husband to die in the ring and would rather be desperately poor
than a widow, but at the same time Braddock’s dedication to his family drives him to risk his life for
the lives of his children, who are shivering in the night because they can’t afford the gas for
heating.

The story doesn’t get muddied by needless subplots, which often plague such films, such as
corporate greed and betrayal. Director Ron Howard focuses all of his attention on the Braddock
Family and their internal struggle to survive together and intact. The Great Depression was a hard
time for millions of Americans and this film captures such hardship as beautifully as “The Grapes of
Wrath.”

Howard handles the dramatic character moments with the same passion as he does the boxing.
You can feel the human struggle as vividly as the gloved punches. When Braddock enters the ring
there is no question that he is fighting for something greater than himself.

I highly encourage anyone reading this to go and see this movie before it leaves theatres and if you
missed in on the big screen, snatch it up on home video and see it. This is the next “Shawshank
Redemption,” and in my opinion a slightly better film if that’s even possible. Even at almost two and
a half hours, it feels like a film of only 90 minutes. “Cinderella Man” literally dragged me to the edge
of my seat and kept me there until the end. Brilliant work, Mr. Howard.