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Fighting (DVD)
Year: 2009
Rating: PG
Director: Dito Montiel
Cast: Luis Guzman, Terrence Howard, Channing Tatum, Brian J White
Release Date: January 07, 2010
Distributor: Roadshow
The Film: 2.5
The Disc: 2.0
FILMINK rates DVDs and Blu-rays out of 5"As an action film, Fighting pulls fewer punches than its name may suggest."
If you're conjuring up images of a bruised and bloody Brad Pitt, stop now! Fighting is not another Fight Club and the sooner you realise this, the quicker you'll start to enjoy this out-of-luck nice-guy movie.
Former model Channing Tatum (GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra, A Guide To Recognising Your Saints) plays Shawn, a young counterfeiter trying to make a buck on the harsh streets of New York. When veteran hustler Harvey (Terrence Howard) sees an opportunity to make some big dollars, he introduces Shawn to the world of underground street-fighting.
Fierce, brutal and unrelenting, Shawn attacks these bare-knuckle fights as a way to improve his life, whilst still clenching on to some kind of dignity.
As an action film, Fighting pulls fewer punches than its name may suggest. While the film delivers interesting performances from intriguing characters - look out for the grandmother! - the few fight scenes are short, and only begin to touch on the intensity that builds towards the end of the film.
The back stories of the different characters take front seat in Fighting. Tatum plays the underdog well (in a similar style to Step Up), and Howard's performance as an edgy and paranoid Harvey is captivating. Similar to director Dito Montiel's debut A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints (also starring Tatum), there is a hint of loneliness and desperation in many of the characters, which makes the developing relationships satisfying to watch.
The deleted scenes on this release add to the complex relationship between Shawn and Harvey, but don't expect any more fight scenes! Just a happy ending where the nice guys don't finish last.