Play It to the Bone

December 11, 2004

Rated: R Runtime: 124 min Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Movies For Guys’ Original Review of the Theatrical Release

This is really two movies in one, with the first movie being a buddy buddy bonding movie and the second being a kick-ass boxing flick.

Actually the first half of the movie is a buddy/buddy/buddy movie with the third buddy being the ex-girlfriend (Lolita Davidovich.) You might be tempted to blow off the first hour as filler designed to keep your date happy while building up a story to go along with the fight. Come to think of it, the first hour is something that will keep your date happy while building up a story to go along with the fight sequence. This isn’t a bad thing though, and the writing is topnotch with an absolute classic conversation regarding a man building bridges. In other words, you want to pay attention during this part and not just make an excuse to hang out in the lobby or grab a second Coke from the concession stand.

While the writing and acting during the first hour is excellent, it’s also a little bit slow. Trimming out 15 minutes or so would have been a nice move here, but I can’t blame them for keeping it just like it is.

Verdict: First hour gets 3 stars.

Now that the story has been set up so that you actually care about the fighters, the movie really starts to kick some serious ass. Woody Harrelson is completely believable as a middleweight fighter. He’s got the look, he’s got the moves, and he just exudes attitude. Antonio Banderas gives this his best shot, and honestly he does a pretty decent job but he isn’t even in the same league with Woody physically.

Camera work is excellent, I really wish that Ron Shelton had directed Any Given Sunday instead of Oliver Stone as he really knows how to bring sporting action to the screen in such a way that you feel the action. It is possible to use artistic camera effects to highlight what is going on in a characters mind without screwing up the action like Stone did, trust me on this. Oh, and you’ll really enjoy what goes through their minds…

Verdict: Second hour gets 5 stars.

Taken together the movie gets a solid 4 star rating and is very much worth your time and money to see. One caveat though if you’re planning to take a date. Make sure she isn’t queasy about boxing violence. If the image of a man pummeling another mans face into a bloody mess would just turn her off for a week, you might want to just go see this movie with the guys. If you do want her to go and need something to convince her to go with you, just let her know that you get to see both Woody and Antonio bare ass naked in the shower… that ought to do it.

Posted by John | Filed Under 4 Stars, Antonio Banderas, DVD, Drama, Lolita Davidovich, R, Woody Harrelson