When it comes to boxing, the first thing that comes to my mind is the happy twist drama I've seen before - the shy iron fist. That drama has something in common with this film. The protagonists are all boxers who fell into a low point and wanted to take revenge and regain their honor and dignity. They even played fake punches. But in fact, both the plot direction and the emotional tone of the film are very similar to Lin Chaoxian's MMA-themed movie fierce battle.
Iron Fist is also a master and apprentice match, but the coach is only to contrast the protagonist, and the role functions are almost all concentrated on one person. On the other hand, in the fierce battle, the two masters and apprentices have equal roles, each with their own destiny, and even at the end, there is a gimmick of the master's revenge for the apprentice. The male protagonist fell from the boxing champion to the ground, and also experienced the pain of losing his wife and daughter, so for his life and honor, but also to win back the guardianship of his daughter, he had to learn from the retired coach to hone his boxing skills. The male protagonist Hope's experience of practicing boxing for others is quite similar to Eddie Peng in the fierce battle. But he was also a down-and-out boxing champion like Zhang Jiahui. He worked part-time in a gym and eventually made a comeback. Even the film has the emotional entanglement between the protagonist and his daughter, which makes people cry.
The boxing match of the film focuses on the opening and the end, which only reflects his decline and rebirth. It is not an exciting match, but highlights the cruelty and blood of the boxing match. At the same time, this film does not give tendentious characterizations and explanations when it shows the boxing scene. It almost objectively expresses the state of the two sides, as if the scene in the deadly altitude is calm, not like a fierce battle or other films. It will arouse the audience's encouragement and sympathy for the protagonist. Those who want to watch inspirational and passionate can ignore this film, and even the fierce battles similar to this film should be more intense. After all, compared to this film, the victory or defeat is not the main purpose, nor is it to emphasize sportsmanship. The psychological state and emotions of the protagonist themselves are the most worthy of attention. His state in the boxing match is the same as his state in life.
Much of the middle of the film is devoted to Hope's complete fall and growth in life. As his coach said, Hope's theme is anger control. Because of his anger, he accumulated anger in the boxing match in order to break out, but he was bruised; because of his anger, he could not stand the provocation of his opponent and eventually killed his beloved wife; because of his anger, he would hold a gun, drink and drive, and go bankrupt; because of his anger , will lose her daughter in court, and even the girl did not want to see him at one time. But his daughter has an adult face, and even her temper is in the same line, and anger control is also her daughter's task. The male protagonist is like a child who is addicted to boxing, but the daughter is like a real adult.
Digging into the hearts of characters seems to be a common tactic in today's movies. The depth of digging can make the characters three-dimensional and full, no longer facial and monotonous, and even "good people" will be hated and "bad people" will be sympathized. It is precisely because of this trend that it is more difficult for us to distinguish between black and white in movies, and there are even people who sneer and despise the naivety of movies with simple binary opposition between black and white. In this film, the boxer nicknamed Magician, who seems to have provoked the protagonist several times, who is suspected of shooting his wife by mistake, seems to be the villain, and he must not be liked by the audience. But looking at him crying after losing the game, he is just a person who simply loves boxing. Just like the protagonist, no matter what flaws he has, he just loves the sport. However, the protagonist and the friends around him that the film has always emphasized are backgrounds of children's homes. It is really just the background, and without further exploration, it seems that the film is not deep enough, and it would be too monotonous to stop at exploring anger control.
In addition, the doubts about the death of Hope's beloved wife, which was a decisive factor in his career, may be that the screenwriter forgot to give the result, or maybe the truth of the matter is not important. The two gunmen with guns at the scene were suspected of manslaughter, one had left his wife and fled, and the other was KOed by Hope in the ring. Judging from the results of the whole incident, it doesn't matter who the real culprit is. What matters is that Hope has gained precious growth and maturity through this hardship.
The keynote of the whole film is family affection. Inspiration and passion are no longer the main thing. If you can be moved by Hope's daughter and moved by his cry of the last blow, this film has already won.
(Produced by Shige, original article, no reprint without authorization)
Text: Shige
September 3, 2016
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