Against the Ropes Review

by Susan Granger (ssg722 AT aol DOT com)
February 21st, 2004
Susan Granger's review of "Against the Ropes" (Paramount Pictures)
    When a film has been shelved for more than a year, you gotta wonder. On the other hand, selling the fictionalized story of Jackie Kallen, the most successful female boxing manager, is a challenge. It's like an ersatz "Eric Brockovich" meets "Rocky " - in one of his later incarnations.
    Educated by her father and uncle, Jackie Kallen (Meg Ryan) grew up in the male-dominated boxing world, and she knows a good prizefighter when she spies one. So her mind starts clicking when she spots Luthor Shaw (Omar Epps), even though she has to bail him out of jail. With the help of a veteran trainer, Felix Reynolds (Charles S. Dutton), Jackie transforms Luthor from a skeptical ghetto thug into a contender and, eventually, a challenger for the championship, despite the corrupt double-dealings of cranky, colorful characters like Sam LaRocca (Tony Shalhoub).
    Meg Ryan chose this role to stretch her dramatic range, and she does. Despite her short skirts and spike heels, she's no cutsey, bubbly America's Sweetheart. Yet spunk should not be confused with strength. And her accent is from mid-nowhere. Omar Epps scores in raw emotional clashes with Ryan. But their efforts are wasted. As they say: "Champ material is rare." Director Charles S. Dutton tries but cannot overcome Cheryl Edwards' episodic, melodramatic, cliché-riddled script that's filled with contrived caricatures, not fleshed-out characters. Surely, there must have been more originality and genuine conflict in Kallen's true-life story. (Boxing fans may spot the real Jackie Kallen in a cameo as a sports reporter at the Tampa Bay press conference.) On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, "Against the Ropes" punches in with a disappointing 5. Perhaps British boxer Frank Bruno put it best: "Boxing is just show business with blood."

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