Shadows on the Wall | Heavyweight

Heavyweight

dir-scr Christopher M Anthony
prd Tiernan Hanby, Kevin Harvey, Nicholas Pinnock, Oliver Slinger, Simon Mariott
with Jordan Bolger, Nicholas Pinnock, Osy Ikhile, Jason Isaacs, Joplin Sibtain, Rob Malone, Barry Aird, Sienna Guillory, Blake Harrison, Jamie Bamber, Adrian Lukis, Alana Boden
release UK Jun.25 rff
25/UK 1h38

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Unfolding in real time and largely in a single room, like a stage play, this British boxing drama has a propulsive pace as it traces the run-up to a championship bout. Writer-director Christopher Anthony keeps the tension high with edgy dialog, beefy performances, prowling camerawork and a churning underscore. The sheer machismo on display is perhaps a bit exhausting, but it's balanced by a terrific sense of underlying emotion.

A tenacious underdog, Derek (Bolger) has prepared for his big match against the champ with trainer Adam (Pinnock). Press coverage is intense, and they're shocked to see their friend Cain (Ikhile) working with the opponent. So now they need to change their game-plan at the last minute. Derek's manager David (Sibtain) urges him to stay calm, but the person he really needs has been delayed. And grandstanding hothead promoter Freddie (Isaacs) certainly isn't helping. Meanwhile, Derek has an injury that causes worries for officials, and a doctor (Guillory) must determine whether he can still fight.

Issues continually emerge, most potently as Adam and Derek confront each other about the way things are playing out and what they should do next. But of course Derek's biggest war is with himself, which emerges continually throughout this pre-match odyssey. It's especially vivid in his teeth-grindingly strained conversations with Cain, who believes that he should be the one going into the ring. And it's up to Derek's team to calm Adam down and get him ready to fight for the title.

Performances across the board have a realistic urgency that adds an electric charge to the film. Bolger gives a remarkably introspective performance as a tough guy who clearly has quite a few inner demons. These are rarely made obvious, but his reactions and frustration are played to pull the audience in. Almost everything is seen through Adam's eyes, and Pinnock offers a steely voice of reason within each messy moment. Ikhile is also superb, adding remarkably nuance beneath his tough-guy stance.

Undercutting the relentless bravado are continual hints of deeper thoughts and feelings that these men are determined to conceal from each other. Old rivalries and bitterness continually surge between them, revealing each character's specific morality. So even if the conversations are delivered in cinematic hard-man banter, they are packed with ideas that provoke the audience to think. And the narrative is ultimately Derek's dark journey into his own soul, and the fact that he isn't alone in this battle.

themes, language, violence 16.Jun.25

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