Resurrecting the Champ

What stands out first about Resurrecting the Champ is the confidence with which Rod Lurie establishes its sports drama identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Resurrecting the Champ asks Samuel L. Jackson and Josh Hartnett to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Resurrecting the Champ is established with useful clarity: Up and coming sports reporter rescues a homeless man ("Champ") only to discover that he is, in fact, a boxing legend believed to have passed away. That direct approach lets Resurrecting the Champ use its 1h 52m running time for character, atmosphere and consequence.

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Visually, Resurrecting the Champ is most persuasive when training shaped into dramatic progression guides attention without becoming an attraction separate from the drama. Phoenix Pictures supports Resurrecting the Champ with training shaped into dramatic progression, giving individual scenes a shared design logic. The United States production character of Resurrecting the Champ is clearest in its use of competition filmed with clarity to make place feel consequential. Even during its busiest moments, Resurrecting the Champ benefits from an edit and sound mix that protect the immediate emotional line.

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Resurrecting the Champ benefits from Rod Lurie being engaging in bursts but unable to maintain the same control about what each sequence needs to accomplish. Instead of making every beat equally loud, Rod Lurie lets Resurrecting the Champ create contrast between pressure and release. Worthwhile ideas compete with an uneven structure throughout Resurrecting the Champ, with the strongest decisions feeling connected to character rather than display. It is still fair to say that Resurrecting the Champ suffers because the pace alternates between hurry and drift, but the problem remains contained.

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The plot of Resurrecting the Champ is built around the uneasy relationship between Up and Champ. For Samuel L. Jackson, that relationship gives Resurrecting the Champ an emotional objective stronger than simple forward motion. The screenplay associated with Michael Bortman lets What reshape the direction of Resurrecting the Champ in stages. Although the treatment of the central character could be sharper, Resurrecting the Champ never entirely loses the thread established at the beginning.

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The central idea running through Resurrecting the Champ concerns discipline, self worth and the danger of treating results as identity. Samuel L. Jackson gives that idea a human scale, allowing Resurrecting the Champ to remain accessible even when its world becomes larger. By returning to What, Resurrecting the Champ turns theme into a source of pressure rather than a message waiting to be delivered. The handling by Rod Lurie lets Resurrecting the Champ leave a little interpretive room, which gives its better scenes an afterlife.

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Resurrecting the Champ relies heavily on Samuel L. Jackson, and the performance responds with enough specificity to carry changes in mood. The contribution of Josh Hartnett gives Resurrecting the Champ a useful counterweight instead of merely echoing the lead. Kathryn Morris makes the smaller exchanges in Resurrecting the Champ count, often through timing rather than emphatic dialogue. Rod Lurie understands that Resurrecting the Champ becomes more persuasive when the cast can imply feelings before the script names them.

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For sports drama fans who care about the people behind the contest, Resurrecting the Champ is ultimately a qualified recommendation. Its most persuasive combination in Resurrecting the Champ brings Samuel L. Jackson together with competition filmed with clarity under the direction of Rod Lurie. The fact that the pace alternates between hurry and drift prevents Resurrecting the Champ from being entirely seamless. Even with that reservation, Resurrecting the Champ has a clear point of view and enough genuine feeling to justify the journey.