Rating: 3.4/5
Review: "Southpaw movie review"

"A well made but disappointingly generic boxing film."

There are a few recent boxing films that held my attention with its characters' development and such are The Fighter and The Warrior. Not to say Southpaw is entirely bad but it is nothing new. In fact, I feel that a good boxing film has to rely on acting of the stars and the emotional depth. To be fair, Southpaw has it. It has the great Jake Gyllenhaal to deliver one of his best performances and a strong performance from Forest Whitaker. That is about it.

The story: A simple story of a fallen man picking himself up. The story is like any other boxing film. No surprises or twists. Just plain straight forward complete with a training montage. However the actors have done their parts to engage the audience with their emotions. Even Rachel McAdams, who appears for a short while, and Oona Laurence (who plays as the daughter of Jake's character) deliver sincere performances. There is no fault in their great performance. The cinematography and direction are decent enough and the music is not bad.

Overall: It is another boxing film that relies on the great performances of the actors. If you are to look at the story department, it is lacking in term of engagement. The pacing is a little off at times. If you are willing to ignore that, the actors' emotions are engaging. And Southpaw as an drama based on emotions, it delivers what it should.