The moment Jim Braddock (Russell Crowe) injures his hand, he realizes that his previously decent boxing career is over, plunging him, his wife “Mae” (Renée Zellweger), and their children into poverty on skid row. He’s fallen from earning $8,000 per fight to scavenging for work at the docks and accepting government assistance just so they can remain in their apartment without electricity. A stroke of luck arises when …

It's a solid boxing film that focuses more on the boxer’s background than prolonged depictions of violent fights. James Braddock’s eventual climb to the championship offered an uplifting story during a period between Jack Dempsey and Joe Louis’s well-known tenures, when the heavyweight title was frequently passed around. My one reservation about Ron Howard's film concerns its depiction of Max Baer, who Braddock de…

It’s a familiar sports narrative—a rise to success, a fall from grace, and then a return to triumph. The plot functions adequately, though it doesn't offer anything particularly original. Crowe delivers a solid performance, but this isn’t considered among his finest works. Giamatti is reliably excellent, however Zellweger’s portrayal feels somewhat contrived. Ultimately, it’s simply an enjoyable film with no d…