You forgot the "amazing" Cuba Gooding Jr.

A very good movie that brings back some reminders of what people went through during the great depression. I thought Zellweger was too pretty for the role but she did a good job, as did Crowe, who in many scenes looked appropriately old and gaunt. Paul Giamatti somewhat stole the show in my opinion, a part that either suited him perfectly or was tailored to do so....in any case, he did a great job.

Good movie and I'm sure it will be nominated for a few Oscars. But I was left with the feeling it won't win.

Ah, but he was in that movie.

Saw it. A good movie, and will most likely get some Oscar noms, though I doubt it will win Best Picture, mainly because it shouldn't.
Russell Crowe and Renee Zellwegger might very well be the two best actors out there right now in terms of ones actually looking for roles where they act and not show off their want for a paycheck to capitalize on their looks. Paul Giamatti definitely played his role to a T, and I hope he gets a Supporting Actor nod.
My problems: A) it was contrived as could be, which is about par for Ron Howard. B) How many times must we make Rocky? I half expected "Eye of the Tiger" to start playing when it showed Braddock in his montage. C) Max Baer. They didn't have to make him an asshole, nor did they have to make him akin to Drago from Rocky IV, but they did anyway.

Not a bad movie, but not great by any means aside from the acting. A solid B or ***.

more sentimental tripe from the king of manipulative schlock. But i'm sure it will win over plenty of people just like the atrociously overwrought A Beautiful Mind.

Well, I was "in" this film from the get-go, no nodding off from me. Nowadays that counts for something for me, as truly uninspiring films will have me tune out within the first hour, but that didn't happen with me in this film and its 2 hours and 20 some odd minutes.

I may have known the outcome of the fight at the end, but consciously repressed it, and the fight was pretty amazing at capturing the raw intensity of a true underdog against some mighty tough odds. I caught myself ducking and dodging during some of the punches that landed or missed. That's when you know you are into the fight that is on the screen.

Is there a magical moment in this film, not really a huge one, but there are a lot of small little moments of fortitude that propel the storyline and offers enough nuggets to become involved in the story of a perceived over-the-hill boxer with 3 children and a wife during the depression era, and somehow he not only gets a last minute swan song of a chance, but a series of chances to reach the pinnacle of his profession, that of boxing. Can you over-value how inspirational Braddock's rise of the top was for the people during the depression era? I think Ron Howard was able to balance it without going over the top with the allegories, while providing the viewer with a concise tale of Braddock's seemingly unbelievable story in the early 1930's.

Crowe looked pretty credible as a pro boxer, and the fights were staged convincingly, and many punches were landing when they were thrown. Zellwegger's role of a supporting wife is okay, she gets a few good scenes of standing up for herself and her family, but it is a supporting role that doesn't draw huge attention to itself. Giamatti is the spark of the film when he's on the screen, it's another good supporting turn for him as well.

Overall, I give it 3.5 stars, or a grade of B+.

I thought the movie was pretty good. I liked how they didn't do anything "silly" like Million Dollar Baby did. What I mean by silly, is that one scene where Morgan Freeman beat up that young punk. That scene was retarded. This movie knew exactly what it was from the beginning and I admired that. Much like most of Russell Crowe's latest films it will be nominated for Best Picture.

Wow, did Ron Howard kill your cat or steal your girlfriend at some point or something?

I myself went into this movie prepared to be manipulated, but I loved it. It hit all the right chords for me and it's stuck with me too. There are a couple great, heart-wrenching scenes that had me tearing up and the fight scenes were great too.



I know it's very fashionable to hate Ron Howard. I can see where some of that comes from. I loved A Beautiful Mind coming out of the theater, less so as time went on. These days I would pass by it without even thinking about it if I wandered across it flipping channels. But this one rang true with me.

The snobbish attitude toward people who like Ron Howard films (read the masses of people who just don't know better) offends me quite a bit. It's like if we like a film, we must have been manipulated into liking it because some other people think it was "atrociously overwrought." I just don't buy that. To me Howard is a more than competent filmmaker who shows flashes of brilliance from time to time. Some may find this one "manipulative schlock" but then I guess that just means I like manipulative schlock.

As of right now, this movie goes right up there at the top this year for me, right along with Revenge of the Sith and Millions, although Cinderella Man is probably in that number one slot right now.

A Question for anyone who has seen the film:

During any of the fight scenes, does Russell Crowe use a phone to try & knock out his opponent?

I saw it, and thought it was excellent. I think not knowing anything about it going in other than Russell Crowe is in it and it involves boxing helped(didn't even know that Ron Howard directed it until I saw Clint). The names James Braddock and Max Baer were familiar. I was hoping it wasn't because Braddock was the third person Max Baer killed in the ring. Turns out the reason I know the name Max Baer is because of his son, Max Baer Jr., aka Jethro Bodine.

Same here. My three hours of sleep and the 10:30PM start time didn't stop me from enjoying every minute of it.

I doubt this movie will be able to capitalize on good word of mouth seeing as how its hero got arrested today.

Plan on seeing this tonight -- can't wait!

:clap: :up: Right on man, totally agree. I wish more people would realize this so Howard would stop making so many movies. Crowe is one of my favorite actors & it pisses me off so much that he made another movie w/ Howard & this one was just as bad.

I movie about Crowe's real life antics should be made, it would be far more entertaining than this tripe.

I thought it was a pretty entertaining film. I don't think Howard is so bad, he can hold his own. This film was certainly head and shoulders about most of the tripe that comes into US theaters nowadays.

Couldn't disagree more, it is actualy the epitome of the "tripe" that comes out of the US theaters nowadays. Unimaginative, cliched, paint by the number underdog story, nothing new, nothing creative, just a bland boring piece film that attempts to lure audiences in by pulling the easy emotional strings.

Simple remedy. Don't watch Howard's films.

If you hate Ron Howard and think all he makes is "tripe," why on Earth did you go see Cinderella Man? Just to be able to complain about it? I for one can't stand Michael Bay, but that doesn't mean I go to his films so I can complain about how bad he actually is.

Saw it last night and enjoyed it quite a bit (and for the record, I did not care for A Beautiful Mind). All in all, I thought it was a terrific boxing movie. In addition to the claustrophobic fighting sequences, it felt it was so because at its core it was about a fighter whose deepest motivation was not being able to provide for his family ("I fight for milk.") and was effectively done by all throughout. Special kudos to Craig Bierko who played a very convincing Max Baer.

B/c I saw it for free, I don't have to pay to go see movies, although I will actually pay to see a film I want to support(like Batman Begins). I'm not contributing a ticket sale or money to the success of Howard & Russell Crowe is one of my favorite actors. I can't criticize a film if I don't see it.

If Russell Crowe doesn't play Braddock, CINDERELLA MAN is a totally forgettable affair...it is only Crowe's acting (the man BECOMES whomever he is playing in almost every role, and you forget about the actor) that makes this picture worth seeing...anyone else in that part, and I think this movie would have no Oscar "buzz" at all.

Just my opinion, of course...

I absolutely loathe almost everything Ron Howard has made since Parenthood, and I loved this film. It is not one that I'd purchase or even watch again, but the acting was amazing, and I loved how they pushed the family/societal dynamics of Braddock over the actual boxing. This made the premise of the film, and the way the people got behind him incredible. I didn't really care for the way they villified Baer, but you need an anatagonist, and he did well.

There's no harsher criticism than not seeing the movie.

While I don't entirely disagree with your opinion on Ron Howard's work..your bringing up of Batman Begins just makes me chuckle. If that movie is half as excellent as Cinderella Man is then that would be quite a feat.

I thought Paul G's performance was great. Crowe held his own. There's definitely some sapiness going on. Sometimes rosey-cheeked Zellwegger can be saccharine sweet and a little over the top. The first hour drags a bit in places, but I thought the fight scenes were really well done and I found myself engrossed more than I usually do. Are there strings pulled? Sure, it's a true, emotional story. That's the point of the film. Is it pulling strings to document what happened in history? Maybe the difficulties with the children were added for effect. I don't know, I honestly don't know much about the actual facts. I suspect it was pretty rough going for them.

In any case, was it an original, groundbreaking film? Not particularly, but that doesn't mean it still can't be a strong, effective, retelling of a true story, which I thought it was. I think when compared to the "tripe" were talking about that generally gets released, this was executed on a higher level. Was it the best film of the year, of course not. Should it win Academy Awards, I doubt it.

People went apeshit for Million Dollar Baby. I enjoyed this more than that one. I had more issues with MDB than CM. Clint Eastwood, Best Actor Nomination??? Please.... MDB was pulling strings left and right, and not all that effectively. With the exception of Morgan Freeman and inspired bits by Swank, CM had better overall performances. There were parts of MDB that had me chuckling at the heavyhandidness of the performances.