fredtee I like the scene in, I presume, Great Britain, where the Rich and Famous immaculately dressed with excited young gorgeous women sip champagne seated at candelabra-lighted dining tables watching the boxing match in the center of the room. Danny Flynn, the white guy beats the black guy (no name) to a bloody pulp, but the referee will not stop the fight. Disgusted, Danny Flynn leaves the ring, while some obviously important guy yells out, "you'll never fight here again."It is an interesting and not-so-subtle commentary on discrimination in British High Society, while the Northern Irish religious-sectarian war, the focus of the film, drags on.

davoshannon First of all The Boxer has Day-Lewis in top form. And according to Barry McGuigan who trained him for the boxing, he would have made a damn good middleweight (?) - his usual immersion taken to new levels.And the support is marvellous. Always like Brian Cox, but here he's joined by Gerard McSorley and Ken Stott who put real grit and heart (resp.)in the story.Yes, it can be seen as dour and downbeat, but there's a lot that rings true. Boxing has a strange cross-cultural appeal up North, and there were indeed instances of Protestant boxers in Catholic Clubs, and vice versa. Needless to say when any one of them took on an outsider there was an immediate unity that politicians could only dream about.When during the first match Ike introduces the Protestant parents of a boxer who once boxed for the club (Sammy Orr), but who died in "the Troubles", I just choke up.Everybody loves a fighter, and if you were in similar circumstances ???.Don't forget it's a more than slightly sanitized version of real life. But as most people found it bleak and depressing already I won't continue.Watch the great performances, and every scene - there's something going on at every turn.

Brian Wright As a boxer he has a reason to rebuild a life around a community-centered activity, the only one he knows. It's hard to imagine how the ultimate dramatic quality would be served were Danny a construction worker or a bartender or having virtually any other occupation. Then you have the metaphor by contrast: boxing is a warlike activity and ostensibly consistent with the conflict of the Troubles... yet it is also a supreme discipline, done well, and a perfect substitute for war where (some fools and users say) honor and greatness can be achieved....For my complete review of this movie and for other movie and book reviews, please visit my site TheCoffeeCoaster.com.Brian Wright Copyright 2009

zitrinr This is a very good movie, although on a now familiar topic of the Northern Ireland conflict. Its greatness, though, stems from an extraordinary performance from that most extraordinary of movie actors, Daniel Day-Lewis.The strength of Day-Lewis's portrayal of the ex-con boxer who is released from to return to a city divided by war and police barriers, is in the silence of the character. Day-Lewis's ability to convey depths of emotion through a look, a nod, a glance, a hand movement, is what makes him perhaps the best actor working (when he decides to work) today.This role, and the excellent Emily Watson's performance, allow this movie to rise well above the potentially trite (though always riveting) subject matter to make this film most worthwhile.