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Fighting

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Fighting (2009)

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Reviews Counted:118

Fresh:48

Rotten:70

Average Rating:5/10

Consensus: Though Fighting has a likable lead performer, and the fight scenes are impressive, the paper-thin plot ultimately unravels.

Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for intense fight sequences, a sex scene and brief strong language.

Runtime: 3 hrs 33 mins

Genre: Action/Adventure

Theatrical Release:Apr 24, 2009 Wide

Box Office: $23,036,320

Synopsis: In director Dito Montiel’s 2009 drama, FIGHTING, Channing Tatum (G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA) portrays Shawn, a young man from the South trying to make a living on the streets of New York City.... In director Dito Montiel’s 2009 drama, FIGHTING, Channing Tatum (G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA) portrays Shawn, a young man from the South trying to make a living on the streets of New York City. When Shawn gets into an altercation while selling bootleg CDs and DVDs, a con man (Terrence Howard) who witnesses the brawl takes him under his wing and introduces Shawn to NYC’s underground street-fighting circuit. In these bare-knuckle battles, Shawn has a chance to win significant money--and also the heart of the beautiful Zulay (Zulay Henao). A film that goes beyond its deceptively simple title and premise, FIGHTING is elevated by the keen eye of Montiel, who also co-wrote the script with Robert Munic, and the charismatic presence of Tatum, who previously had a minor role in the writer-director’s cinematic debut, A GUIDE TO RECOGNIZING YOUR SAINTS. Although the film goes through the standard up-by-the-bootstraps dramatic cycle, the performances of Tatum, Howard, and Henao make the story surprisingly compelling, and the fight sequences are exceptionally fierce, giving the movie considerable added zest. Though less high-profile than combat classics such as ROCKY and THE KARATE KID, FIGHTING fits well into the category of revered movies of the boxing/martial-arts subgenre. [More]

Starring: Channing Tatum, Terrence Howard, Zulay Henao, Brian White

Starring: Channing Tatum, Terrence Howard, Zulay Henao, Brian White, Luis Guzmán

Director: Dito Montiel

Director: Dito Montiel
Screenwriter: Dito Montiel, Robert Munic
Producer: Kevin Misher
Composer: David Wittman, Jonathan Elias
Studio: Universal Pictures

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Aug 25, 2009

[DVD Details]
 
 

DVD Features:

  • Region [unknown]
  • Anamorphic Widescreen - 1.85
  • Disc 1/Side A: Theatrical Release/Unrated Version

Audio:

  • Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround - English
  • Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround - French, Spanish
  • Subtitles - English, SDH, French, Spanish

Additional Release Material:

  • Deleted Scenes
  • Disc 1/Side B: Unrated Version

Audio:

  • Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround - English, Spanish
  • Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround - Spanish
  • Subtitles - English, SDH, French, Spanish
 
 
 
 

Reviews for Fighting

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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the protagonist happens to be played by an actor who looks more like a fashion model than tough street fighter

Full Review Source: Draxblog Movie Reviews | comment Comment
12/17/09
Dragan Antulov
Dragan Antulov
Draxblog Movie Reviews

Fighting consistently feels like a patchwork of better movies without their excitement or rooting interest in character.

Full Review Source: DVD Review | comment Comment
09/23/09
Felix Gonzalez Jr.
Felix Gonzalez Jr.
DVD Review

There’s something interesting in this film and that’s the reality it brings to its subject matter. Scenes seem real. And that’s a lot to do with the performances. They’re all terrific. But there’s the reality of New York too, there’s grit here.

Full Review Source: At the Movies (Australia) | comment 3 Comments
08/26/09
Margaret Pomeranz
Margaret Pomeranz
At the Movies (Australia)

Despite the formulaic script and cringe worthy moments, the performances from the leads and creation of the subculture are well executed by director Montiel.

Full Review Source: FILMINK (Australia) | comment Comment
08/24/09
Hernán Alcerreca
Hernán Alcerreca
FILMINK (Australia)

The only thing you'll be 'fighting' is your lagging attention span.

Full Review Source: PopMatters | comment Comment
08/23/09
Bill Gibron
Bill Gibron
PopMatters

Montiel and his collaborators can pat themselves on the back for elevating empty material just a bit, but this is disposable cinema, designed to hit and run after an opening weekend. [Blu-ray]

Full Review Source: Groucho Reviews | comment Comment
08/22/09
Peter Canavese
Peter Canavese
Groucho Reviews

Entertaining and engaging, Fighting has action, romance and a buddy element in a tight, professional package

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
08/20/09
Andrew L. Urban
Andrew L. Urban
Urban Cinefile
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
08/19/09
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

Fighting is a testosterone-driven movie full of blood, beautiful women, big muscles and enough plot to be a good movie.

Full Review Source: BET.com | comment Comment
06/10/09
Clay Cane
Clay Cane
BET.com

All of this, however, is plainly just a veneer on a solidly generic punch-up movie, and it thus becomes a drag. A more cartoonish approach would probably have been more fun.

Full Review Source: Sunday Times (UK) | comment Comment
05/17/09
Edward Porter
Edward Porter
Sunday Times (UK)

While everything is highly predictable, the film is well designed and bone-crushingly violent fights are ably staged in Brooklyn.

Full Review Source: Observer [UK] | comment Comment
05/17/09
Philip French
Philip French
Observer [UK]

Quite how that will go down with his testosterone-fuelled, spotty audience, I have no idea.

Full Review Source: Sunday Mail [UK] | comment Comment
05/17/09
Mickey McMonagle
Mickey McMonagle
Sunday Mail [UK]

The problem is that, even with some very strong acting, we're never quite convinced to believe either the relationships or situations.

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
05/16/09
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall

The tell-it-as-it-is title hardly indicates anything out of the ordinary, but this bare-knuckle boxing flick is put together with more love than you’d expect.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
05/15/09
Trevor Johnston
Trevor Johnston
Time Out

Like a poor man's Fight Club, Fighting is hardly a heavyweight. But with an enjoyable performance from Terrence Howard, the film is no disaster.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
05/15/09
James Mottram
James Mottram
Channel 4 Film

There are no surprises here – this is a story that has been told before, many times. But Tatum gives us a glimpse of the charisma that could make him a star.

Full Review Source: Times [UK] | comment Comment
05/15/09
Wendy Ide
Wendy Ide
Times [UK]

You couldn't call Fighting great - at its core it is simply too cruddy - but Montiel has managed to inject it with the smell and feel of the streets that he clearly once knew well.

Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
05/15/09
Andrew Pulver
Andrew Pulver
Guardian [UK]

Montiel’s film lands on its feet with a gripping, will-he-or-won’t-he third act – it’s worth the wait.

Full Review Source: Daily Telegraph | comment Comment
05/15/09
Tim Robey
Tim Robey
Daily Telegraph

The film is lifted slightly by the performances of Howard and Tatum, even though the latter’s mumbling delivery is more Stallone than De Niro. But even Rocky’s narrative had a redemptive arc.

Full Review Source: Little White Lies | comment Comment
05/15/09
Dan Stewart
Dan Stewart
Little White Lies

Fighting has nothing to say about men willing to pummel each other senseless. Montiel's second feature is a facile, unchallenging watch, floating like a butterfly but stinging a bit like one, too.

Full Review Source: Digital Spy | comment Comment
05/15/09
Simon Reynolds
Simon Reynolds
Digital Spy
 
 
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Latest News for Fighting

April 23, 2009: Critics Consensus: Fighting Is Down For The Count
This week at the movies, weve got bare-knuckle bouts (Fighting, starring Channing Tatum and Terrence Howard), the wonders of nature (Earth, narrated by James Earl Jones), a... More...

April 23, 2009: Five Favorite Films with Terrence Howard
The Oscar-nominated actor Terrence Howard has amassed an impressive resume since making his Hollywood breakthrough in the 1995 drama Mr. Holland's Opus (he also starred in that... More...

April 23, 2009: Box Office Guru Preview: Don't You Dare Mess with Beyoncé's Man
The environment needs saving so Hollywood is doing its part to go green by opening recycled versions of Fatal Attraction and Fight Club in hopes of attracting young adults. In a... More...

January 18, 2009: Trailer & Poster review Opens in new window
More...

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