Fresh and Exciting

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

Blistering performances.

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

Damn This Is A Good Movie ... The Iceman (Ving Rhames) Is Stripped Of His Heavy Weight Title And Sent To Prison For Rape, Where He Runs Into the Prison Champion (Wesley Snipes) ... The Tension In The Movie Is Great As You Never Know When The Battle Will Begin ... The Great Peter Falk (Colombo) Is A Mobster In Prison On Tax Evasion And Arranges The Battle Of The Century ... Great Actors Squeezing In Great Roles And A Good Story Line Culminate In An Amazing Boxing Match (Much Like The Greatest 3 Rounds In Boxing History "Hagler Vs Hearns) ... Directed By Walter Hill (The Warriors) This Is A Great Movie For Fans Of Snipes, Rhames, Falk, Michael Rooker, Jon Seda, Fisher Stevens, Wes Studi And More Or Just Fight Fans In General ... On Top Of All That Snipes Character Portrays A Very Zen Philosophy That Is Rarely Seen In This Genre (Except For Some Of The Early Seagal Movies) ...

Arrogant, brutish, but smart and formidable heavyweight boxing champion George "Iceman" Chambers (superbly played with swaggering brio by Ving Rhames) gets sent to prison on a rape charge. While in jail Chambers encounters modest, yet agile and fearsome reigning inmate champ Monroe Hutchen (a nicely understated performance by Wesley Snipes). Wily mobster Emmanuel "Mendy" Ripstein (an excellent portrayal by Peter Falk) sets it up so Chambers and Hutchen can find out who's really the best in a major high stakes fight. Director Walter Hill, who also co-wrote the lean, compelling, and intelligent script with David Giler, brings a tremendous amount of flashy style and invigorating burning energy to the absorbing narrative: the brisk pace rarely lets up for a minute, there's no filler to speak of, the tone is appropriately hard and no-nonsense, and the big match with Rhames' savage strength pitted against Snipes' lithe speed is extremely fierce, gripping, and exciting. Moreover, there's a welcome and refreshing moral complexity to the neatly contrasting main characters: Although a convicted murderer, Hutchen's low-key and reserved philosophical nature makes him likable while Chambers' raging ego and cockiness ensures that he's hateful and unappealing throughout. The first-rate supporting cast helps a lot: Michael Rooker as sympathetic head guard A.J. Rooker, Wes Studi as Chambers' obsequious cellmate Mingo Pace, Jon Seda as Ripstein's loyal caretaker Jesus "Chay" Campos, Fisher Stevens as the weaselly James "Ratbag" Kroycek, and Dayton Callie as Chambers' cagey manager Yank Lewis. Rhames and Snipes, both of whom are in exceptional ripped shape, make for thoroughly plausible fighters. Lloyd Ahern II's glossy cinematography, Stanley Clarke's moody score, and the rousing rap soundtrack are all up to par. Well worth seeing.

This is a pretty boring jail-boxing-flick (yah, what a word!) that features very little story, uninteresting main characters and a concept that focuses purely on the boxing aspects and forgets basically everything else.There is one big problem with this movie; it's two main characters played by Wesley Snipes and Ving Rhames. Both are boxing professionals who got convicted, one for murder, the other for rape. Seems like the Snipes character got somewhat based on Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter and the Rhames character obviously on Mike Tyson. But fact is that both are tough criminals, who obviously are no choir boys. They are not really portrayed in a likable way and you just don't know who to cheer for. My guess is that it was the movie its intension to make the Snipes character the more likable one but he's portrayed in an incredible unsympathetic way and quite honestly I would always rather hang out with Ving Rhames than with Wesley Snipes, no matter what crime he committed. The movie features of course other characters, of which some got portrayed by some good and well known actors (Peter Falk, Michael Rooker) but you just don't ever care about any of them and most also feel rather pointless within the movie.So yes, the main characters are a problem but so is its story. Basically all the story does is build up to its inevitable end fight. It's makes the movie predictable but boring as well, since basically very little else is ever happening in the movie.Walter Hill was once a new promising action movie director but with movies like this he shows that he sort of has lost his touch. It's a very clichéd made movie that features all of the ingredients you would expect from it. The already bad and uninteresting story gets also told in a bad and uninteresting way within the movie. He tries to give the movie some style and pace but it really doesn't work out too well.Normally I'm still quite fond of boxing movies but this movie just has very little redeeming qualities. The movie just doesn't offer anything new or exciting to watch. The boxing matches within the movie aren't exactly anything adrenaline pumping, also because you already know in advance how they are all going to end.Not really recommendable...4/10http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

I'm sorry if that comes across as harsh but this film is a complete mess, both in the editing room and to the bewildered acting from some usually tidy performers. The plot is a straight forward one that doesn't call for much ingenuity on the viewers behalf, we can reasonably expect competent acting and choreography in what is basically an unofficial biopic of Mike Tyson's conviction for rape and his subsequent time in prison.Instead of putting heart to the story the makers have simply plonked two big name black actors in a prison setting with one having a bigger mouth and ego than the other, and all this leading to a big punch up to decide who is the rugged and toughest man on the planet !. Throw away interview scenes of the woman raped by our main protagonist don't garner sympathy or merit because they are so misplaced and badly acted they seem like an edited after thought.Poor film and in one scene where Michael Rooker looks bemused at the fight between Ving Rhames & Wesley Snipes.......it says it all, it's embarrassing so don't be fooled by the talent appearing in the movie, they are all wasted and deserve better, hell we all do, 2/10.