The Boxer
From AwardAnnals
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| Director(s) | Jim Sheridan |
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| Distributor | Universal Studios |
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| Yet another potent (although critically underrated) drama from Jim Sheridan and Daniel Day-Lewis, the Irish director and British star (respectively) of My Left Foot and In the Name of the Father. The story focuses on Danny Flynn (Day-Lewis), a promising boxer who had been imprisoned at age 18 for associating with IRA terrorists. After serving a 14-year sentence, he returns to his Belfast neighborhood at a time when local IRA leader Joe Hamill (Brian Cox) is attempting to negotiate a peace treaty with the British. Despite having no further interest… | |
Honors
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Amazon.com
Yet another potent (although critically underrated) drama from Jim Sheridan and Daniel Day-Lewis, the Irish director and British star (respectively) of My Left Foot and In the Name of the Father. The story focuses on Danny Flynn (Day-Lewis), a promising boxer who had been imprisoned at age 18 for associating with IRA terrorists. After serving a 14-year sentence, he returns to his Belfast neighborhood at a time when local IRA leader Joe Hamill (Brian Cox) is attempting to negotiate a peace treaty with the British. Despite having no further interest in IRA rivalries, Danny finds himself at the center of political and emotional turmoil when he is reunited with his former girlfriend Maggie (Emily Watson, of Breaking the Waves) who, in Danny’s absence, married another IRA man who is now in prison. A strict, unwritten law forbids relationships with the wives of IRA prisoners, but as the former boxer channels his energy into reviving a neighborhood boxing gym, the attraction between Danny and Maggie proves irresistible. This gives a strategic advantage to a militant IRA rival who opposes the peace treaty, drawing Danny back into the bitter and potentially deadly struggle between warring IRA factions. Emphasizing the emotional complexities that arise between Danny and Maggie, this powerful, superbly acted drama demonstrates a sharp understanding of the deep-rooted fears and loyalties that fuel the “troubles” in Ireland, where peace seemed to finally (if tentatively) be achieved in the summer of 1998. Offering a deeper understanding of the Irish conflict, this Universal Collector’s Edition DVD includes a full-length audio commentary by director Sheridan and producer Arthur Lappin; an alternate ending and deleted scenes; the original theatrical trailer; and Fighting for Peace: Inside The Boxer, a documentary featurette about the making of the film. —Jeff Shannon
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Director Jim Sheridan links up once more with Daniel Day-Lewis for 1997’s The Boxer, a study of a violent Belfast’s uneasy crossover into the peace process (they had previously worked on My Left Foot among other films). Day-Lewis stars as Danny Flynn, imprisoned in his late teens for terrorism, now out after 14 years. A once promising boxer, he’s initially looking to resume what’s left of his career. However, his rekindled love for Maggie (Emily Watson), daughter of local IRA boss (Brian Cox), is coupled with a need to be a part of the healing process in Northern Ireland. With the help of his former trainer (Ken Stott), he reopens a non-sectarian gym. However, the non-pacific wing of the IRA, personified by Gerard McSorley, resents Flynn, not least for consorting with Maggie, who is another IRA prisoner’s wife. Day-Lewis plays Flynn as an almost spiritual figure, still caught in the introspection that enshrouded him during his years in jail. Ironically, the well-executed boxing scenes provide a respite from the air of serious violence that pervades the rest of the film, symbolised by the ominous rotorblades of the ever-present helicopters, from which much of the action of this sad, yet gripping and ultimately uplifting movie, is shot. —David Stubbs
