Day of the Fight Review – Excellent, Five Stars, A Brilliant Directorial Debut
- Details
- Category: Indies, Docs, Foreign Film
- Published on Tuesday, 19 November 2024 09:39
- Written by Janet Walker
Day of the Fight, from Falling Forward Pictures, presents an emotional and impactful directorial debut from Jack Huston, that follows a former championship fighter, burdened with the past, on the day he has been given one last shot.
The film begins in a dingy, run-down, Brooklyn apartment and Mike Flannigan, played by Michael C. Pitt, is trying to write to his daughter. We see from his attempts; he is not a smart man and has trouble with simple spelling. As he thinks about today and the tomorrows for those he loves, we see in his flashback, a haunting foreshadowing as he is told about his brain injury.
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He stops at Steve's Gym, and we meet Steve, played by Ron Perlman, who has been training him, and helping get him back in fighting form. As we travel though his morning, we understand today is the big day, and the entire neighborhood is rooting for him. He stops to see his uncle, played by Steve Buscemi, who has been holding his inheritance from his mom, and tries to help him keep the sorrow from the past buried, and we begin to understand the importance of today.
He stops at a butcher shop/pawn shop and sells his mother's engagement ring and then visits the drycleaner/bookie, played by Anatol Yusef, to bet it all on himself. He stops at the deli, and we can see everyone is doing what they can to show him how much they care for him. He is one of their own and after all the hardship is finally getting a chance, a second chance at the title.
Throughout the film the demons and darkness of the past haunt him, and another stop on his journey of redemption is to visit a childhood friend, who has since become a priest, played by John Magaro. The two were raised in the streets of Brooklyn and represent the divergence of paths and choices. By the end of the conversation, we understand both have made peace.
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As we travel through fight day with him, by the afternoon he appears to be a man who saying goodbye to the people he loved, including his father, played by Joe Pesci, and his former wife, played by Nicolette Robinson and by the time he visits the cemetery, his foreshadowing statement seems to convince the audience that his intent is to kill himself.
But the events of the day, the huge gambling bet on himself to win, and making sure his ex-wife and daughter are secure contradict that statement. We see throughout the film, he is a kind man, willing to give away his possessions to someone in need. So, by the time he arrives at Madison Square Garden, we are unsure of his real intent.
To manage all the stops he rides the subway, visions of his childhood and his moments with his mother as they rode the subway flash almost subliminally, as the clackety, clack, fast moving subway train and the cacophony of subway life, seems comforting to him. The memory, initiated by a saxophone player seeking tips, brought him joy.
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Day of the Fight is an impactful, emotional journey of redemption. Using black and white, Director Jack Huston creates vivid imagery, and clarity by removing any distractions. We see clearly. He presented this life now devoid of color, devoid of any rich and vivid moments, as the afterlife of tragedy dropped the curtain on what should have been and was erased by sorrow leaving only these days with brief glimpses of brightness. Without giving away the poignant ending, the only use of color throughout the film is at the end. A collage of moments past creates an affecting, tender, and comforting finale.
The ensemble of talent delivers strong, impacting, performances. Each of the actors who share these redemptive moments, stand out for their authenticity. Michael C. Pitt embodies the down on his luck, struggling fighter, who lost his world and even through his faults, and poor choices, he is a sympathetic character. We root for him. Joe Pesci delivers an Oscar worthy performance for his role as Mikey's dad, felled by a stroke, unable to speak, and trying to form the words to speak to his son. He embodies the mannerism the physicality, and in this emotional scene Pesci speaks no words, and fills the screen with his presence.
A captivating five-star directorial debut, Day of the Fight, opens December 6, 2024. It is a must-see film.
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Country: U.S.
Language: English.
Runtime: 105 minutes.
Release Date: December 6, 2024.
Director: Jack Huston.
Producer: Josh Porter, Jack Huston, Jai Stefan, Emma Tillinger Koskoff, Colleen Camp.
Executive Producer: Todd Diener, Jimmy Price, William G. Santor.
Writer: Jack Huston.
Cast: Michael C. Pitt, Nicolette Robinson, John Magaro, Steve Buscemi, Ron Perlman, Joe Pesci, Kat Elizabeth Williams, Anatol Yusef, Kaili Vernoff, Jordyn Rax, Billy Griffith, Milan Marsh, Tim Gallin, Eugene Solfanelli, Phillip Johnson Richardson, Tom Johnson, Dennis Jay Funny.
Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation’s top stories, for more than a decade. A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five screenplays, "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and the International Federation of Journalists.
