Review by Eric Hillis
Directed by: Christopher M. Anthony
Starring: Jordan Bolger, Jason Isaacs, Nicholas Pinnock, Jamie Bamber, Sienna Guillory, Blake Harrison
Like the recent Irish movie Swing Bout, writer/director Christopher M. Anthony's Heavyweight is a British boxing drama that doesn't actually feature any boxing. Instead, like Swing Bout, its narrative is set almost exclusively in a locker room. In something close to real time we spend 90 minutes with a fighter and his team as they prepare for the big bout.
Where Swing Bout was centred on the old cliché of whether a fighter will agree to take a fall in a rigged fight, Heavyweight eschews such cheap melodrama. The stakes here are relatively low, though not for the people involved. Veteran coach Adam (Nicholas Pinnock) has staked his reputation on Derek (Jordan Bolger), a relatively untested young fighter who has found himself presented with the opportunity to compete against the world heavyweight champ, two other boxers having pulled out of the contest.
Unlike most boxing dramas, the central hook of Heavyweight isn't centred on whether Derek can win the fight, but rather if he can get his head in the right place to even compete. It's a film that highlights how so much of being a professional athlete is not only physical but psychological. Over the movie's tense run time various demons work their way into Derek's head, threatening to leave him in no frame of mind to compete. His older brother fails to show up, having promised he'd be in his corner. He learns that his long time sparring partner (Osy Ikhile) is now working for the rival camp. In a moment of rash anger he punches a mirror, scarring his knuckles in a way that could see the fight called off if Adam and his cut man (Barry Aird) can't hide the wound from the boxing authorities.
Spending 90 minutes in the close company of a boxer as he awaits the moment that could define his life proves an intensely stressful experience. You'll have a newfound appreciation for athletes as you question whether you could hold up under such pressure. Whether you're a fan of boxing or not is irrelevant, as you'll likely relate to this pot-boiling scenario in your own way. Most of us have found ourselves in Derek's position at some point, faced with a key moment to prove ourselves but haunted by demons telling us we're not good enough.
Out of the various characters it's Adam who emerges as the key figure. He's the one responsible for getting Derek to this stage, and he's ultimately the only one who can convince the young fighter he's worthy of this shot. Heavyweight never takes us into the ring, but Pinnock and Bolger go the full 12 rounds in a gripping thespian bout. Anthony's fluid direction ensures the film never feels stagey but he avoids any distracting camera trickery. His best asset here is Pinnock's face, the actor subtly telling us more about Adam and his journey than any flashbacks or lengthy monologues might. The story is essentially told on Pinnock's face, his expressions a barometer of Adam's confidence in getting Derek ready to make history. It's Adam we root for more so than his fighter. We suspect Derek will have other opportunities, but for Adam this seems like his last chance to prove his worth as a coach. It's a relief that we don't see the actual fight, as after 90 nerve-racking minutes of locker room politics and psychology it would surely prove an extra level of stress we couldn't possibly handle.
Heavyweight receives its world premiere at the 33rd Raindance Film Festival on June 18th.
