The winner and still champion is Ron Howard. Once again, Ron Howard has delivered a phenomenal motion picture. This is his best work since Apollo 13, if not ever. It is the inspiring true story of Jim Braddock that takes place during the Great Depression. Russell Crowe was as good as ever portraying Jim. Throw in Paul Giamatti as his long time manager and friend Joe and you have a powerful 1-2 punch. The knockout blow is Renee Zellwegger's portrayal of Jim's wife Mae. It is rare to see an Oscar worthy film out in the theaters so early in the year, but this is one of them. While I have no idea what is coming out this December, I have a hard time believing that it could be any better than this.
The story begins in the last months before the Great Depression starts. It shows Jim and Mae living well due to his success as an undefeated boxer. Fast forward to 4 years into the Great Depression and you see Jim, Mae, and the three kids in tattered clothing barely scraping by. While this movie has boxing, it is not a boxing movie. It is a movie about a man who fights to bring home milk and pay the heating bills so that he doesn't have to give his children up. In one of the most touching scenes in the film, Jim tells his son that no matter how hard it gets, we do not steal. He then promises that they will stay together as a family. After breaking his hand in the ring, Jim has his license to box revoked and he is forced to wait at the docks each day in hopes of being one of the lucky ones to work that day. As time goes by, they are so far behind on the bills that their electricity is turned off and the kids are freezing. Mae sends the kids to stay with her sister while Jim is at work one day. Because he promised his oldest son that he would not send them away, he swallows his pride and gets relief funds from the government. He also begs the men from the boxing commission for some help until he could get back on his feet. He gets just enough to turn the heat back on and the kids come home.
Due to a last minute dropout, Jim is given one last chance to box again at Madison Square Garden. It is against a great boxer and he is given no chance to win. It is for enough money to get him back in the black though, so he fights. Inspired by his family, he beats this guy and gets his manager's attention. (In this first comeback fight, the audience was cheering. I love going to movies that stir up so much emotion that people forget that it is a movie and begin clapping.) Joe sees the fire inside Jim and gives him money to stop working so that he can train for a comeback. He pulls some strings and gets Jim his license back.
The rest of the film shows Jim fighting for his family and inspiring all of those struggling through the depression. He became a hero to everyone. I laughed, cried, and cheered during Cinderella Man. My wife even loved it despite not looking forward to seeing "a boxing movie". I would recommend this movie to anyone. This is definitely a movie that I will own on DVD as soon as it comes out. I give this movie a solid A.
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