Cinderella Man (2005)

Directed by Ron Howard. Starring Russell Crowe, Renée Zellweger, Paul Giamatti, Craig Bierko, Bruce McGill, Paddy Considine, David Huband, Rosemarie DeWitt. [PG-13]

Old-fashioned, inspirational true story of light heavyweight boxer James J. Braddock (Crowe), on top of the world in the late-20s before falling on hard times when the Great Depression hits. Written off as a has-been a few years later, he then mounts an amazing comeback, earning him the titular nickname (from writer Damon Ruynon) on his way to a championship bout with the heavily-favored Max Baer (Bierko). Hardly a Depression-era cliché goes unturned in this formulaic but likably sentimental underdog drama (same goes for boxing movie clichés). Suggestive period details and good performances from Crowe and Giamatti (playing Braddock’s longtime friend and boxing manager) make up for faulty scripting, Zellweger’s inability to make much of her underwritten role of the worried wife and mother, and the crass decision to make Baer out to be an almost cartoonish villain, even proud of killing an opponent in the ring (the opposite of what most historical accounts depict him as). DeWitt, who plays a neighbor, is Braddock’s real-life granddaughter.

69/100