Theo Robertson In June 1983 up and and coming welterweight boxer boxer Billy Collins Jnr fought Luis Resto Collins record was 14wins 11 by KO while Resto had 20 wins , 8 by ko , 8 losses and two draws . It was expected to be a tough fight for Collins but one he was expected to win . Things didn't as expected though and Resto beat the up and coming fighter on points . Considering the damage Collins received in the match it was something of a surprise it went the distance . When Collins dad and trainer shook hands with Resto he instantly knew something was wrong . The referee and boxing commissioner were called over and Resto's gloves were examined . Most of the padding from them had been removed prior to the fight so effectively Resto had been hitting Collins with his bare hands . This documentary by Eric Drath tells of the fall out from the fight This is a documentary of two halves . Or rather a documentary of one third followed by two thirds . The first half hour is compelling stuff centering around one of the biggest scandals to have rocked the fight game . The pictures of the damage inflicted upon Collins are genuinely shocking . Boxing isn't a sport that attracts the faint of heart but to see Collins battered and swollen face is sickening . Due to this fight he suffered eye injuries that effectively ended his career . Seeing boxing was the only thing Collins knew and that he was being touted as a future star of the sport the lifestyle changes of Collins led to him going of the rails figuratively and going off the road in his car literally in something close to a suicide . Collins had effectively died that June night in 1983 If that first half hour doesn't get you very angry then the following hour will . What Drath has done is make a documentary that comes close to assassinating the memory of Collins . Apparently Collins didn't fight again had very little to do with the eye injuries he received but had more to do with his father and manager Billy Collins Snr trying to bring a multi million dollar court case against Resto's manager Panama Lewis and the boxing authorities . So someone receives a maiming in the ring brought by the most disgraceful cheating imaginable . They receive serious injuries that destroyed their career and they're supposed to just carry on with their life like nothing has happened ? They're just being greedy are they ? This is a disgusting line of thought and the fact the case was thrown out literally adds insult to injury Resto and Lewis didn't get off with their obscene attempt to cheat . Both of them had criminal charges brought against them and they both spent two and a half years in jail . Resto never fought again but Lewis was still employed as a trainer even though he remains banned from corners during fights . You can see Darth wanting to make Lewis the main villain of the documentary and that Resto too is a victim . Resto suffered terribly after his jail sentence , being unemployable and who lived in the cellar of a boxing gym . But this doesn't wash . It'd be impossible for a boxer to have had the padding of their gloves removed and not notice this . It's similar to people living next door to Dachau and Belsen and not to notice what was happening during the war . Resto eventually comes clean to knowing about the sabotaged gloves but that's telling us something we already knew . There was only one victim in that fight - the late Billy Collins Jnr

beatles0001 The scene where Resto finally admits guilt is a telling one. And part of the reason I gave it a 6. Along with the first 20 minutes. Just great story telling. The shuffling around the country of Resto was pathetic and Drack making himself the star of the show. Pathetic!! Resto is a sad case but likable in a warped way. Panama Lewis is perhaps the worst person I have ever seen on screen. He is a slim above all others. The worst ever!! Resto's sister is not sympathetic and she has too much, way too much sympathy for Resto. What he did was wrong. He isn't a hero. But at least he makes amends. Panama is so sleazy its scary. He wont accept any guilt or claim he did anything wrong.

goodfellamikec The film really starts off great as a very objective approach to what happened at the notorious Resto/Collins fight. But the film loses all credibility when the director breaks the fourth wall and starts parading Resto around.It is the cardinal sin of a documentary filmmaker to do anything but DOCUMENT. Here, the director pays to have Resto fly all over America and do something he would otherwise not do. That is not a documentary. That is "reality" television.Furthermore, his constant harassment of Billy Collins family is very uncomfortable. When a subject doesn't want to be interviewed, LEAVE THEM ALONE. There is nothing entertaining about watching a filmmaker bother someone until the police are called. It's something I would expect from network news, not a serious documentary filmmaker.It's really such a shame because the film had a lot of promise. I won't say it's completely a waste of time, but I felt the filmmaker could have made a great film without Resto's guilt parade.

udar55 Just finished this excellent feature length documentary that details an infamous (in the boxing world at least) 1983 bout between undefeated prospect Billy Collins, Jr. and the guy he was supposed to beat, Luis Resto. The end result is kind of a THE THIN BLUE LINE (1988) for the boxing world as the film examines the illegal activity that occurred during the bout and the tragic consequences it had on a multitude of lives. It certainly exposes the sleaziest side of boxing and you can't help but feel sorry for the guilt-ridden Resto who bares his soul for the filmmakers. Lewis, on the other hand, is a piece of work. I've never seen a more reprehensible human being in my entire life. First time director Eric Drath used to be a boxing agent and he handles a majority of the material well. There is one hugely manipulative misstep though with Drath having Resto travel to Tennessee to apologize to Collins' family, despite their earlier request of not wanting anything to do with the documentary. Regardless, this can be seen as being much more than about dirty boxing - it showcases the workings of the human conscience.