Resurrecting the Champ

Posted by Ryan Ilcisko (ryanil2001@yahoo.com) on August 29, 2007

Resurrecting the Champ had the potential to be a knockout, but like most big prize fights it fails to deliver the goods. The film is loosely based on the true story of J.R. Moehringer, a writer for L.A. Times, who befriends a local homeless man who claims to be iconic boxer Bob Satterfield from the 1950’s.

The films stars Josh Hartnett and Samuel Jackson. Harnett plays Erik Kernan, a local boxing beat reporter for the Denver Post, who is trying to desperately step out of his father’s shadow, who years ago was a huge figure in sports radio. Upon numerous attempts searching for his big break, he stumbles on “Battling Bob” from that point on Sam Jackson goes into his best Antwan Jackson impersonation and this is also the point where the film goes from being a serious drama, to “In Living Color”. At this moment I lost it, I could not keep a straight face, every time I heard “Battling Bob”; recite one of his lines it was over, he was truly hilarious.

After “Bob” explains who he was 50 years ago, Erik Realizes that this could be his big breakthrough that he has been looking for, while I don’t know about you, but when ever I meet a homeless person and they claim to be “Jimi Hendricks” I tend not to buy it, but Erik decides to do an editorial on the former champ, whom everybody believes is to be dead except for him, and he can finally reach the grand stage, where he’ll be successful journalist he believes he is and his wife will take him back and his son can bask in his glory.

Going into this film with an open mind and believing I was going to see a serious drama, it was nothing short of a laugh riot, with bits and pieces of melodramatic garbage thrown in the mix. Enduring Jackson’s dialogue was at times more difficult than going 12 rounds with “Iron” Mike, I had to question myself at times if he was really trying to be serious, I didn’t even believe him when he said he was thirsty.

Through out the length of the film you begin to understand and pick up the clues that “Battling Bob” is not entirely who he says he is, but Hartnett’s character is not to far away in his own troubles When faced with the reality that “Bob” is just a crazy homeless man, he has to comes to grips that he has also fudged the truth and his own career is now in jeopardy. Now marked as a libelous journalist to the general public, he must find a way to right his wrongs and save his name and make it up to his son. Although during that time, it took me awhile to think of someone more annoying than the kid who played his son, not since the days of “Bobby Budnick” has someone irritated me as much.

The plot of the story had potential, maybe if it had been done by another director, or had other actors it could have worked. The drama just seemed to fall flat, and the fact of the over acting by Sam Jackson and the under acting by Hartnet didn’t seem help the cause.
Among the terrible acting, another aspect I just couldn’t seem to get over was the overtly played out notion between all the father and sons in the film, I didn’t really know if it was going for a boxing version of Field of Dreams, or just some movie about some whacked out homeless guy, who thinks he’s somebody else. It all seemed to come off as very corny and generally rushed. They all seemed to have a terrible dad, and tried to out do each other with their sad stories, and their own personal redemptions of it.

Frankly this film was entire waste of money, the poor acting, the terrible story, and the redundant themes, made it nothing out of the ordinary for the viewer. After losing two hours of my weekend, this fighter was ready for the showers.

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