The Cut Review – Provoking, Gripping with Riveting Performances
- Details
- Category: Haute This Issue
- Published on Thursday, 04 September 2025 11:28
- Written by Janet Walker
The Cut, from Altitude Films, presents a riveting psychological drama, as a past his prime boxer is given the chance at redemption and facing insurmountable odds, he and his wife trainer decide to risk it all.
The opening scenes we see what appears to be a title fight, and a boxer, The Irish Wolfe, played by Orlando Bloom, appears to be winning, the ring announcer is calling the fight, if he continues he can take home the belt. Somewhere in the sixth round, his mind and we see, the flash point, a distant memory shakes him, and he drops his hands, the challenger takes advantage of the moment and pulverizes him. We see him land blow after blow, splitting his eye, the blood, is just too much and the referee calls the fight. The promising career of the Irish Wolfe was over.
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Ten years and thirty pounds later, The Wolfe is running a gym with his trainer and lover, Caitlin, played by Caitriona Balfe, and we see him, now, a has been to the young, overly confident and cocky, who enter the ring with attitude and disrespect. Now he is mopping floors, unclogging toilets, and tolerating simply because he has no choice.
As the news breaks out of Las Vegas, the challenger in a big purse match collapsed and died, and now with one week before the show, questions are swirling around the fight and who the promotor, Donny, played by Gary Beadle, can tap and more importantly make weight. The next day we see them arriving in Vegas.
Now he is one a seven day clock, and as we see he needs to drop more than 30 pounds to make the maximum weight allowed for his class. From the beginning, it is clear that the rules of the professional boxing association do not apply, but again the decision to continue, to be known forever as a could have or to be a champion is the Wolfe's.
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With Caitlin and the team, Paolo, played by Andonis Anthony, and Manny, played by Ed Kear, they have him on a strict tried and true method for dropping the weight, and three days into it, the amount of weight needed is not dropping and, Caitlin reminds him of what they agreed on, if it becomes dangerous the pull the rip cord.
As The Wolfe is walking through the hotel, he hears someone coaching another boxer. So, he steps into the room, and sees Boz, played by John Turturro, training a fighter. The words he speaks are like jabs to a boxer, and they land in The Wolfe's soul. So, after, they talk to Donny about the weight, he explains that Boz gets things done, his methods are shady, but he delivers.
Once they decide to bring him on, the intensity of the training sessions change and he is alienating every member of The Wolfe's team, in order to fully control him. Now, he is coaching two boxer, and both of them are fighting for the moment, and doing whatever it takes to make weight. With three days, the methods become more shocking to the observer, whatever it takes to drop the weight, sweat, sweat, sweat, even withdraw blood if necessary.
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This leads into the explosive and climatic ending. The Cut delivers with a vengeance, blow after shocking blow of untethered and powerful characterizations as each Orlando Bloom and John Turturro embody the roles and deliver, riveting, career high performances.
Throughout we understand the dedication it requires to be the best at anything. The moments of glory are preceded by years of training and disappointment. Few make it to the show, whatever that is, and determination to keep going, as is played out in The Cut, to rise up again after every defeat, to fight every ghost, demon, and darkness of the past that wages war is the only path to victory.
Unleased, abandoned to the life of the character, The Cut is a provoking, thrilling and spellbinding psychological drama, gripping from the first minutes.
The Cut opens exclusively in UK and Irish cinemas September 5, 2025. It is the movie to see. See it.
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Country: UK.
Language: English.
Runtime: 99 minutes.
Director: Sean Ellis.
Producer: Mark Lane, Leonora Darby, James Harris, Orlando Bloom, Adam Karasick, Bret Saxon, Thomas Fanning.
Executive Producer: Jeff Bowler, Tevaughn Campbell, Lauren Case, Anders Erden, Ronnie Exley, Kalyn Harper, Sean Krajewski, Benjamin Kramer, Lawrence Minicone, Jeremy Ross, Michael Torchia, Blair Ward.
Writer: Justin Bull.
Story: Mark Lane.
Cast: Orlando Bloom, Caitríona Balfe, John Turturro, Clare Dunne, Gary Beadle, Andonis Anthony, Mohammed Mansaray, Ed Kear, Oliver Trevena, Kaine Zajaz, James Wright, Gemma Acosta, Chris Ginesi, Danielle Lewis.
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 has completed the non-fiction narrative, "Unholy Alliances: A True Crime Story," and "Days, Times, Seasons, Events: A Collection of Poetry & Prose," are available on Amazon. She is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a member of the International Federation of Journalists.
