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GIRLFIGHT review
There is a great film currently out there in the world...
Why it might even be playing at a wonderful theater
near you this very moment.
This is one of the best films you’ll see this year... and
right now... we filmgoers are smack dab in the middle
of film hell... There is more Hollywood dreck
destroying the purity and sanctity.
Now I remember when we first began getting reports
about GIRLFIGHT way back when Bradley and Lynn
Bracken were filling us in upon its performance at
Sundance this year.... where it split the top prize
honors.... and folks... some 8 months after... I’m
sitting here in a theater in Austin, Texas discovering
exactly why.
GIRLFIGHT is utterly fantastic.
At the beginning of things you might find yourself
thinking... “Hmmm, what’s so special about this?”
But as you sit there in the theater you begin to
become completely and utterly enthralled by the
journey that Michelle Rodriguez’s character goes on.
This is the story about that bad girl... In old 1950’s
films she was Barbara Payton or even later on in
film... I’m talking about Rizzo from GREASE. This
isn’t a film about Sandra Dee or Annette Funicello or
Sarah Michelle Gellar....
Michelle Rodriguez is that tough as nails... claw your
eyes out, spit up your nose, knee to the groin sort of
gal that looks out the top of her eyelids while flicking
a burning smoldering cigarette butt into your heaving
chest. She’s tough.... dresses down, tomboy through
and through.
She causes trouble at school, kicks the dung out of the
high class nose wavers that pick on the lesser haves...
And there comes a point where she has a moment of
direction for her life.
Now, guys... This is not a ‘girly’ film... the fighting
and the boxing in it is superbly handled and shot... In
fact there is one thing that Karen Kusama (the
director) and Plummy Tucker (the editor) do that is...
stunning. Hands down it worked so well that it left
me a bit punch drunk. You see... in the boxing
scenes... you’ll find Michelle punching straight into
camera... you’ll see this sudden bright flash of
WHITE... then the camera adjusting as if recovering
from the blow as Michelle’s fist pulls back for the
next blow.
The results of this is a very very disrupting and
affecting effect. The film is dark, so when these
bright flashes come... your eyes are impacted... My
head jarred back because... well I’m a redhead..
bright light really really hurts my eyes... and MAN
WAS IF EFFECTIVE! The result for me was the
most kinetic experience I’ve had with a boxing
moment in film.
That’s saying alot cause I grew up with Balboa and ol
Jake pummeling me in theaters as a child... but damn
it worked good for me.
Now... on another level... You care about this
character. I found myself completely involved with
what was going on with her. And when she has an
altercation with her father in the kitchen of her
home.... Dear lord, I began shaking. I mean... the
scene was just violently upsetting. In boxing films...
we always concentrate on the winning or the fight or
the big... whatever it is that the fighter is working
towards. From THE CHAMPION to THE
LEATHER PUSHERS to ROCKY and so on.... They
are films about succeeding in the profession. Here,
here we finally really and truly see a profound
psychological reason that the character boxes. And
when it is revealed.... It emotionally resonates like
you are not prepared for.
I want the next film, I want a sequel... I want to know
what happens next for her.... I want to visit this
character every year. She is just fantastic.
Reward this film with your presence and it will
reward you tenfold. I cannot recommend this film
highly enough. It is powerful and impactful
filmmaking.
This isn’t just a story about bad kid makes good...
It’s about turning hate and frustration into something
else. And the film is fantastic. Enjoy. I know you
will.
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Actually, that's probably more frightening than a switchblade. "...BUT YER GONNA BE SORRY WHEN I'M KNEELIN ON YER EARS AN SPITTIN UP YER NOSE MAGGOTFARMER"!!!
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No spoilers. No mismashing about. Straight to the point, and very convincing. One of your best reviews Harry, I have to say. They should all be this focused. Thanks.
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Revenge is like biting a dog because the dog bit you.
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I know how hard it is to get a movie made. Hats off to Miss Kasuma and Miss Rodriguez for their endevoring work. In 1987, I pitched an idea to Roger Corman where I wanted Laureen Landon and Linda Hamilton to portray rival female boxers. Roger thought it was too ambitious! Then, two years ago I went to Mark Lester's company and pitched it to the woman who was running distribution. She said she wouldn't know how to sell it! That's damn her job! That's what she gets paid for! Needless-to-say, the ladies proved that they could make an entertaining film and if you want something done right, do it yourself. Don't listen to the naysayers! I expect great things from these women in the future.
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And he's right about the film too. double bonus.
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This movie was a poorly acted piece of shit. How much does a glowing review go for these days?
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Were you watching that Helen Hunt football movie from the days of the after school special? I don't know what movie you saw, but the acting in this one was superb and the supporting characters didn't overshadow the main character, who is the actual focus of the movie and not the boxing (though I read a critic who whined that there wasn't enough boxing in the film). I know I posted a review already, but I have to defend this movie as it is one of THE best of this year and Rodriguez is so very good. I hate to see it overlooked by those who come to this site and when it comes awards time. It's in limited release right now, but I think they're expanding it this weekend by 200 theatres.
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I was going to pass this one by... but you've got me interested enough to give it a shot. If I'm disappointed I'm coming back here to kick your butt Harry! ;)
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I just saw this movie yesterday and my only reaction was that I lost whatever remaining faith I had in the Sundance Film Festival. This was a stupid movie. Period. The entire film is designed to appeal to those who view the world as a series of cliches and stereotypes. I can't believe anyone is even discussing the performances in this film. Aside from the girl's manager, who's believeable and capable od some pretty interesting choices, the rest of the performances are straight out of a student film (except maybe John Sayles cameo, too, which is kind of funny). It is my belief that this film would be laughed off the screen if it were made by a studio but since it was made independently, people just assume its authentic and meaningful. It isn't. This is real movie-of-the-week territiory.
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At the end, there is no closure on her father and brother's stories. I felt a little robbed by that. It's a quick ending. To me, that was the thing that prevented this film from being very good as opposed to just good. You can tell it's a little film from some of the shots. Rodriguez is great, but you still feel something's missing when all is said and done. Go see it, but don't expect the greatness Harry expressed above.
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I agree that there should have been a wrap up of some type with the father and brother. But, considering what they had, they did a pretty good job. Sure, you can tear apart every director's first film, but they were successful at what they created. Take Robert Wise's "Curse Of the Cat People." Has nothing to do with the original and not that entertaining of a film. Then again, Mr. Wise did go on to win four Academy Awards in directing. Howard Hawks' "Land Of the Pharohs" could have been better, but he did give us "The Thing From Another World", "Scarface" and "Rio Bravo" to name a few. Then there's the great John Ford. Say no more.
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Harry my hat is off to you for recognizing this fine film. Most people I've talked to have liked it, so I'm surprised anyone can refer to Girlfight as total crap. I guess you naysayers definition of total crap is a well-acted, well-directed, well-written film with no explosions or titties. If you like things that are good--go see this movie. Michelle Rodriguez, who apparently never boxed or acted before, is very, very good and made the movie for me.
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*Warning* Some Spoilers
First off, credit should go to the filmmaker for over-coming the odds and getting this film made. I agree with Harry that the boxing scenes are some of the most inventive and credible moments in the film. They were raw and engaging and frankly swept me off my feet. I also felt Rodriguez -
Oct 05, 2000 12:33:39 PM CDT
Ilke the movie but the ending unravels like a cheap sweater
by one punch mickey
I didn't get to see this film at Sundace but I did see it at Edinburgh last month. It is really a good story and has amazing performances but everything after the BIG FIGHT just crumbles like a house of cards in a wind tunnel, it just doesn't hold up compared to the rest of the film, which is bad because it is a good film.
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That effect where a character punches at the camera and there's a momentary white flash has been done before. Steve Norrington has used it in both of his movies (Death Machine and Blade). Now I really like the effect and by no means should this only be exclusive to one director, but I wish this would have been mentioned somewhere in the review.
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Harry, I was nearly moved to tears reading your touching reviews of Almost Famous. You discussed how it related to your own career, and it was beautiful to behold. Why can't you do the same for all your reviews? I mean, I'm sure you've been beaten up by plenty of girls in your time. That is nothing to be ashamed of, God alone knows how many times I've been on the receiving end of a purse! However, these experiences should help you relate what its actually like to be in a girl fight, and, more importantly, how closely the movie comes to reflecting that experience. I hope you try to follow that theme in the future. For example, before you review The Grinch, you might want to dress up as Santa and steal all of the presents of some town in the mid-west. Well, that's kind of a stupid example, but you get my point.
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p.s. love the harry head
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..and the boxing scenes are nowhere near as good as "Raging Bull"'s. NOWHERE NEAR AS GOOD.
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Just setting the record straight, the white-flash-frame is not a Stephen Norrington invention. It was used by Little Jimmy Cameron in "The Abyss," and then again in "Terminator 2," so it predates "Death Machine" by quite a few years. (Dunno who Cameron ripped it off from, tho.)
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I thought Girlfight was a terrific movie. Ms. Rodriguez is a powerful presence on screen, and she's definitely the main reason to see the film. I was also disappointed by the "lack of closure" of the father's storyline, but not so much that it affected my overall satisfaction. I actually saw this the same night as The Exorcist, and, oddly enough, my girlfriend said she liked Exorcist better, even though she'd been pumped to see Girlfight for weeks, and had been revolted by Exorcist (her first time). So there you have it: Girlfight good, but not as good as The Exorcist.
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Oct 06, 2000 5:20:46 AM CDT
HOW AWESOME WOULD GIRLFIGHT 2 would look on the MARQUEE? I say B
by geekbasher 3.0
But this time beat up a really fierce ass BITCH! I WANT TO SEE GIRL ON GIRL ACTION! I WANT TO SEE THE CATFIGHT OF THE MILLENIUM!
I WANT TO SEE BLOOD ON BREAST AND NAILS BROKEN...DAMN THEM PRESS ONS!!
GIRLFIGHT 2: THE BITCH IS BACK! -
I'm sorry, but I watched a free preview of this flick at my university and it was just a mediocre bag of crap. Nearly every performance was half-assed and just plain flat, and to top it off... you'd swear that the director never used a camera before in his life. The boxing scenes alone make this movie unworthy to see. Instead of making the fights energetic and intense (you know... to help portray the idea that this young woman can hold her own) the director does long drawn out closeups in slow motion to orchestrated music. WTF! Instead of seeing actual punches, we get closeups of elbows and feet. TERRIBLE! This movie made me want to go see Rocky III and IV repeatedly for two days. This movie is another example of indepedent film trying all to hard to put out a blatant message but falling flat on its face when it comes to the actual craft of making story and characters interesting to watch.
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to all of you who hated the movie: there is no way this boxing movie even approaches the levels of absolute crap that was attained by "play it to the bone", perhaps the worst movie in years. if you want to really torture someone, if you really want to subject them to 1984-type levels of horror, tie them to a chair and make them watch emelio and woody play it to the bone. now that was the worst boxing movie hollywood ever produced. horrible movie. period.
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Oct 07, 2000 2:47:48 PM CDT
To the last comment about Play It To The Bone...Emilio and Woody
by lenny nero
Antonio is the preferable, since it's another fuckin' actor.
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You hit the nail in the coffin! Raging Bull makes this indie crap flick look like horse manure. Let's quote Harry one more time: "The result for me was the most kinetic experience I've had with a boxing moment in film." Harry, you don't know shit about boxing! Stick to the Spiderman posts. Hasta la vista baby!
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yeah, well, emelio, antonio, whatever sorry. i'm sorry that i can't be perfect. well, you uncovered my mistake, you're a big man now. the point still stands:
play it to the bone sucks satan's asshole. that is all. -
Not great, but good. The ending was too abrupt and some of the direction was more stylish than appropriate. But the performances were mostly good and the story carried well. It was a boxing movie that wanted to be more and I think for the most part it succeeded.
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I thought the closure between the girl and her boyfriend was enough. The movie was about the girl at a precise stage in her life. It would have strained credulity for *all* the problems in her life to be "closed" all at the same time. If you want *that* much closure, you might consider watching only Disney cartoons or "afterschool specials" from now on.
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Come to think of it, I think the story with the Father DID more or less close. It didn't close with a nice red ribbon around it, but it certainly ended up a hell of a lot more closed than it was at the beginning of the movie... Waitaminute again... in the middle of writing this post, I'm changing my mind again. I think the father story only closed in my own head because of the way I *think* the family will react after the movie ending. Wow, I think that's a GOOD thing, to let the viewers project their own view of how the father situation will end up, based on what we've seen of the father's character.
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I think when we mean "closure", we don't mean "problem solved". We don't mean closure for her character, more like closure for that part of the story. It just would've been nice to see some kind of aftermath to their fight in the kitchen, even if the situation is still as bad as ever, even if nothing was solved from it. What's wrong with that? Why does everyone think that art has to always be undefined? What's wrong with saying what you want to say, instead of clouding it in prententious obscurity?
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I was working as an "Assistant to the Producers" for HSX Films and was handed the screenplay for Girlfight. I wrote a synopsis on 8/20/97 and recommended it for production. I was thrilled when I heard it was getting made! I didn't expect it to become a blockbuster but it has done quite well! I am proud of Karyn Kusana for her gusto. I haven't seen the film yet [I am working toward a PhD, have FOUR kids and train for triathalons...little to no movie watching time these days!] But I do plan to see it ASAP. Thanks Harry, for giving it such a great review!
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May 21, 2001 5:31:20 PM CDT
Can someone help me find the email adress of Michelle Rodriguez?
by e-life
I'm in love...seriously in love.
She got a smile and a look of a billion!
Y'all would say that I'm crazy, but this is the only way to say it. She 's like a dream that wouldn't go away, a dream that I will enjoy every day.
She broke my heart when I knew that she lives that far away, please give me that chance to send her this and I'll find something for you that I could repay...here is my email adress:
venomm@hotmail.com
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