First Post

This is my first post, information about me in the profile I guess. I couldn't help but feel like I was making a MySpace while choosing a background and such. Was a weird feeling. Anyways. I'm Mason and I really love movies. I spend way more on going to the movies than I should with my incredibly meager cash flow. I love Netflix and feel that I have watched every movie worth watching on it, and have now moved on to the television shows on it. Hell, I may even review some television shows on this blog. So on to my first review. The most recent movie I've seen is The Fighter. And I'll probably go back few the past months and review some of the ones I've seen as well.

The Fighter, when I first saw the trailer for The Fighter on Apple Trailers (my roommate basically has it as his homepage and we watch most of the new trailers that come out) I saw it as another "be anything you can be" sports movie. And that is really it is. But despite all that terrible beat to death theme for a movie, I really enjoyed it. Mark Wahlberg (Micky Ward) and Christian Bale (Dicky Eklund) are two of my favorite actors. Wahlberg is type casted as <insert someone from the Northeast States here>. That's the only character we have seen him pull off well. Despite this he did an amazing job with this movie. He did a great job presenting the struggles that his character had. In his decision making of abandoning his mother has his manager, and his brother as his trainer. The new love interest of Charlene Fleming played by Amy Adams adds to this chaos of a family life he has. To those who haven't seen the film this movie is about a family that revolves around boxing (a family that revolves around fighting, literally, and metaphorically).

Micky and Dicky have 9 crazy sisters, an over-controlling mother, and what seems to be an alcoholic father (they did not play on his alcoholism but his constant "red-face" is a telltale sign of a life of alcohol abuse).They come from the very meager town of Lowell, Massachusetts. The only claim to fame they have is that Micky's older half-brother Dicky "knocked out" Sugar Ray in a fight years ago. An interview crew is following around Dicky and his family on what Dicky says is an interview of a former boxing great. In reality the camera crew and interviewer are making a documentary on crack addiction in America.

Dicky lives in a crack house. He has a girlfriend who is a crack addict, and his friends are crack addicts. Crack, that's what this guy excels at. He always shows up to train Micky late, and generally just cares about his next hit. His ways finally send him to prison. In prison he is regarded as prominent member of the community by his fellow inmates. When the interview takes a turn to his more personal reflections and inner-workings he realizes that he is now an open book for all to read, and storms out of the viewing in the prison. When he gets out of prison he turns his life around, he says goodbye to his former life and really fights to be a part of his family and Micky's life again. He becomes one of his trainers once again after showing he REALLY does care and fights for his family.

After years of Micky trying to make it as a boxer, he tries to leave behind his family which he sees as holding him back. Dicky is sent to prison and Micky has to vow to abandon him as one of his trainers and his mother as his manager for Mickey O'Keefe to continue to train him. O'Keefe was the real Micky Ward's trainer and portrays himself in the movie. He played a real minor character in the scheme of things about does a tremendous job as being the voice of reason along with Charlene.

Charlene and Micky hold a tender relationship. Charlene is viewed by sisters and mother as an "MTV girl" because she went to college for a few years and now works as a bartender. Charlene does a fantastic job of really not caring what Micky's family thinks of her. Amy Adams plays this role perfectly as the don't give a damn girlfriend who chimes in common sense when it is most needed. Micky eventually starts to listen to this voice and really starts to become something.

Does anyone else love the ending of a movie that makes your chest swell with pride (not just because I was seeing it with my girlfriend and you know, swelling chest = badass, right)? And maybe even fighting back some tears? That was how this movie ended. The unity of the friends and family of Micky Ward at the end of the movie truly wrap it up perfectly. I wanted to go home and give my mother a hug. The feeling of accomplishment, greatness, and glory were palpable at the end of this movie. A family torn apart for various reasons yet seems to be keeping it together, really does prove they keep it together.