The Fighter

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The Fighter

R

Released Dec 17, 2010

1h 56m

Drama

Biography

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Popcornmeter

91%

Tomatometer

254 Reviews

89%

Popcornmeter

100,000+ Ratings

For Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg), boxing is a family affair. His tough-as-nails mother is his manager. His half-brother, Dicky (Christian Bale), once a promising boxer himself, is his very unreliable trainer. Despite Micky's hard work, he is losing and, when the latest fight nearly kills him, he follows his girlfriend's advice and splits from the family. Then Micky becomes a contender for the world title and he -- and his family -- earns a shot at redemption.

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Critics Consensus

Led by a trio of captivating performances from Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, and Amy Adams, The Fighter is a solidly entertaining, albeit predictable, entry in the boxing drama genre.

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Candice Frederick

Reel Talk Online

Overall The Fighter is a touching, soulful knockout of a movie.

Rated: A

Sep 9, 2017

Full Review

Philip French

Guardian

Both Wahlberg and Bale are excellent in their different registers, as are Melissa Leo and Amy Adams as the differently calibrated women.

Feb 7, 2011

Full Review

David Sexton

London Evening Standard

Wahlberg, always so physically solid, is deep inside himself in this role.

Rated: 4/5

Feb 4, 2011

Full Review

Don Shanahan

Every Movie Has a Lesson

While at its core, The Fighter does become a predictable boxing comeback film building to that Hollywood ending, the performances and acting clinic in action are worth your attention and audience.

Rated: 4/5

Oct 13, 2024

Full Review

Danilo Castro

Next Best Picture

Bale, Leo, and Adams are exceptional, and Russell’s ability to imbue a conventional underdog premise with his high-strung eccentricities gives the film a unique texture.

Rated: 8/10

Jul 11, 2024

Full Review

Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

The film falls somewhere between bare-knuckle and blue collar, brought to the screen with that docu-style handheld-camera that indie filmmakers so love to use for bracing reality, and Irish family melodrama...

Aug 19, 2023

Full Review

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Sergio N.

I love Boxing and this movie helped me love it more

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/15/25

Full Review

Stephen C

Based on a true story in 1 hour and 56 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated R for Language Throughout, Drug Content, Sexuality and Some Violence!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The USA grossed over $93,600,000.00!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/07/25

Full Review

Mate P

The Fighter is not as compelling as I wanted it to be. It takes a while to get going and it did not lock my eyes on the screen for more than a few scenes. So all in all it's just not as compelling as I expected it to be. Maybe my expectations were too high or the watching experience wasn't good. On the other hand I found the dialogues very well-written, it might sound odd, but a lot of them are funny. The cinematography and the editing are really great. The structure and the pacing is good, but somehow it's just not compelling. Maybe it's because of David O. Russel's directing, because he brought in actors outside of his usual group. For example I didn't enjoy Mark Wahlberg's performance. On the other hand the G.O.A.T. was as amazing as usual, while Amy Adams and Melissa Leo brought in the surprising elements of fun and awkwardness. The Fighter might have been a better experience if I set my expectations lower, but after watching American Hustle, I did not.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

07/06/25

Full Review

Faiz D

Absolutely loved Bale's performance.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

05/13/25

Full Review

David L

The Fighter is one of those movies where you wish we had Oscar nominated movies like this now in this decade. The 2020s have been a real dry spell of average films that don't hold a candle to films like David O. Russell's trilogy of great character studies of relatable human beings.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/24/25

Full Review

Charlie R

I have read several times that in romance the opposite of love is not hate it is indifference. That came to mind today in 2024 when I watched an old talk show clip with guest Amy Adams. That led me to look up the film being discussed because I didn't recognize anything mentioned. My surprise was that I had seen it soon after it came out and I had obviously completely forgotten. Now I had to think back and all that came to me was Christian Bale doing a lot of mumbling and looking confused but not one scene or quote was recalled. I usually remember something in particular from movies as to why I think they were poor. The Fighters didn't warrant even that.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

11/24/24

Full Review

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David O. Russell

Director

Mark Wahlberg

Micky Ward

Christian Bale

Dicky Eklund

Amy Adams

Charlene Fleming

Melissa Leo

Alice Ward

Jack McGee

George Ward

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2:24

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Synopsis

For Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg), boxing is a family affair. His tough-as-nails mother is his manager. His half-brother, Dicky (Christian Bale), once a promising boxer himself, is his very unreliable trainer. Despite Micky's hard work, he is losing and, when the latest fight nearly kills him, he follows his girlfriend's advice and splits from the family. Then Micky becomes a contender for the world title and he -- and his family -- earns a shot at redemption.

Director: David O. Russell
Producer: David Hoberman, Todd Lieberman, Ryan Kavanaugh, Mark Wahlberg, Dorothy Aufiero, Paul Tamasy
Screenwriter: Scott Silver, Paul Tamasy, Eric Johnson
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Mandeville Films, Closest to the Hole, Relativity
Rating: R (Language Throughout|Drug Content|Sexuality|Some Violence)
Genre: Drama, Biography
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 17, 2010, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jul 1, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA): $93.6M
Runtime: 1h 56m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital, DTS

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