by John J. Raspanti “What are you gonna do? Kill me? Everybody dies” --Charlie Davis Before Body and Soul was made in 1947, most boxing films had a universal theme. The hero was close to perfect. If he did anything wrong, it wasn’t usually his fault. If it was, by the end of the film, he’d atone and make up for it in spades. City of Conquest (1940) and Gentleman Jim (1942) … [Read more...]
Watch it on Netflix: The Calcium Kid
by Charles R. Horgan I watched this movie twice. I started watching it one night, fell asleep, woke up during the last 20 minutes and re-watched it completely. The first time I watched The Calcium Kid, I didn’t think there was much to it, and found the movie to be a harmless and humorous distraction from other business (sleeping). The second time I watched it, I understood … [Read more...]
Watch it on Netflix: Knuckle
by Charles R. Horgan After an unexpected couple of weeks removed from Netflix, I bring to you the good news of Knuckle for this week’s “I Watched it on Netflix.” As usual, I’m picking a boxing-themed movie from the available streaming movies available in order to fill an evening or two in the long stretches between fights. Usually these movies are bad, so I’m happy to say … [Read more...]
Watch it on Netflix: 4 Weeks of Sunshine
by Charles R. Horgan Here we are, for another installment of my weekly series, where I shall randomly pick a boxing movie from the Netflix Streaming library and let you know if it’s worth watching. As I have feared, there seems to be more junk than substance in the queue, but I won’t let it stop me. This week, let’s see if 4 Weeks of Sunshine is a hidden, independent … [Read more...]
Watch it on Netflix: The Boxer
by Charles R. Horgan In my ongoing series, I randomly pick a boxing-themed movie from the “streaming” section of Netflix and give it a whirl. This week, we enter the blue-tinted world of Northern Ireland in Jim Sheridan’s The Boxer (1997, 113mins), and watch as he fights folks in the ring, and fights the violent culture of I.R.A. men that have become addicted to violence. … [Read more...]