Shadows on the Wall | Day of the Fight

Day of the Fight

dir-scr Jack Huston
prd Colleen Camp, Jack Huston, Josh Porter, Jai Stefan, Emma Tillinger Koskoff
with Michael C Pitt, Nicolette Robinson, Ron Perlman, John Magaro, Joe Pesci, Steve Buscemi, Kat Elizabeth Williams, Anatol Yusef, Beckett Guest, Darlene Dues, Milan Marsh, Zoe Tactuk
release US 6.Dec.24
23/US 1h45

VENICE FILM FEST
RAINDANCE FILM FEST

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For his writing-directing debut, Jack Huston creates an unusually introspective take on the boxing genre, infusing the film with moody, jazzy rhythms, even in the climactic match. As a result, the story is unusually involving, as we find ourselves rooting for a flawed man who is trying to make things right. Shot in luxuriantly grainy black and white by Peter Simonite, it's also strikingly beautiful to look at.

In 1989 New York, Mikey (Pitt) is given another shot at the middleweight title by long-time coach Stevie (Perlman), a decade after his last bout. Over the course of the day, he visits people who matter to him, reminiscing about the circuitous route his life has taken. His main goal is to reconnect with his ex Jessica (Robinson) and now-teen daughter Sasha (Williams) after losing them to alcoholism, which led to prison after a fatal car crash. There's also his lifelong best friend Patrick (Magaro), who is now a priest, and his estranged father (Pesci).

Each of these encounters adds to the bigger picture of who Mikey is, offering a glimpse into how he has been trying to reassemble his life from broken fragments he left scattered along the way. The hitch is that he knows this might be his last fight ever, so he is seeking forgiveness, mainly from himself, and perhaps some sense of redemption. Huston maintains gritty authenticity in following Mikey's internal odyssey, adding subtle colours to the flickering memories that swirl through his mind's eye.

Pitt adds a steely intentionality to his offbeat persona as the former champ who is trying to clean up his own mess. In his eyes, we can see his gentle soul, which is expressed in quiet generosity even to strangers he meets. This allows us to understand his mistakes and root for him as he seeks to make ammends. Standout supporting roles for Robinson, Perlman, Magaro and Pesci add gorgeous textures to the film, including some sharp-edged humour and dark emotionality.

Clearly drawing on his generational experience, Huston reveals a deep understanding of the language of cinema, continually digging beneath surfaces. So while there are echoes of other boxing movies, this remains something distinctly original, from its lyrical inside-out approach to how the pace is set by unexpected musical choices. It's a film that gets under the skin and urges us to think and feel the story instead of simply watch it.

themes, language, violence 22.Nov.24

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