Admirable film.

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

I think the purpose of this film is to provide viewers insight on the life of a married couple. The mental and physical strain each partner experiences throughout the marriage. Also I think it was meant to show the life's of struggling artists. I think personally this couple is lacking affection and there actions show it for sure throughout the film. In the beginning of the film I got the feeling that art is what brought them together and toward the end I felt art is what is keeping them together. Watching this film made me appreciate art more.I really enjoyed the significance of the film which felt was the couple it's self.

"Love is a roarrrr!!" This is the theme which echoes throughout Oscar nominee for best documentary "Cutie and the Boxer"; a movie that undoubtedly nobody has heard of. More about Cutie than the Boxer: Starting off as an attempt to shine light on artist Ushio Shinorhara, best known for his avant-garde pieces and action paintings from the late 60's to today, where he physically uses everything from his fists to his forehead as a paintbrush, director Zachary Heinzerling lays out an introspective story of this somewhat eccentrically generic artist as he sets up a gallery exhibition. But in an odd twist of fate, Heinzerling inadvertently captures a far more interesting subplot surrounding Shinohara's much younger wife, Noriko, giving audiences a look at the portrait of a strained marriage, filled with alcoholism and regret, where Noriko (a very talented artist herself) lives in her husband's shadow, as she likens her marriage to "two flowers growing in the same pot." Opening with the striking image of an 80 year old Asian man putting on comically large boxing gloves, dipping them into black paint and proceeding to aggressively pummel a white canvas, which stands twice his size, it would be easy to say this is a doc which contains some imagery that commands attention. But more so, "Cutie and the Boxer" contains more intriguing nuances within its character analysis. Especially during the latter portions, where Heinzerling focuses more on Noriko and her hand drawn animations; animations which star a quite liberated female character, who goes by the name "Cutie". During this section of the film "Cutie and the Boxer" takes its purest and most developed form, as these character's true motivations become transparent. Heinzerling uses the most creative means possible to bring different layers of this story to life and the cinematography is pretty great (the final shot was subtly the most artistic image in the entire film). But although the meat of this worked for me, I never felt as engaged with the subjects or subject matter as I believe Heinzerling would have liked me to. Final Thought: "Cutie and the Boxer" is honestly a movie that, from the poster alone, I was dreading to have to sit down and watch. Now, was I blown away after I finished this? No. But if you are on Netflix and interested in watching a film regarding a case of female liberation masquerading as an art documentary, then "Cutie and the Boxer" is an interesting enough watch.

This documentary is about an old couple that shares the same passion for art. I think the purpose of this documentary is to inspire people to do what they love, and never give up on what they love and who they love. I think it was a inspirational documentary because even when he didn't get to sell anything he still never stopped making his art pieces and sculptures. It wasn't the best documentary but it was interesting to see his ways of art as well as her ways of art. I've never seen anybody do art with boxing gloves, that was the most interesting. Id recommend this documentary to anyone who likes art or sculptures. I think it would be good ideas for artists.

Zachary Heinzerling's documentary is crafted as masterfully as any art film I've seen. The subjects–two Japanese-American artists who work in New York City, Ushio and Noriko Shinohara. Accented by telling moments and minutes of silence, thought, and reminiscences, the film exposes one of the truly beautiful and mystifying characteristics of the Japanese language. So much is exposed in so very few words, but those words are accompanied by expressions of emotion and 'understood' acknowledgments that seem unfinished or cut off to someone who does not speak Japanese. As an appropriate demonstration of the expression of these two lives and the communication they've shared, the film is framed by live creation of art by the two artists. Ushio creates "action painting" by hitting a canvas with sponges attached to boxing gloves, and Noriko composes a story in drawings creating the character "Cutie" based on her own life, but with elements that are only realized in Noriko's fantasies.One of the most striking things about this film is the fact that it captures moments that seem unbearably awkward to me but are received matter-of-factly by Ushio and Noriko in turn. There is a sense of pride present in Ushio, which he expresses unabashedly at times in the film, but there are also incredibly humbling moments of relinquishing that pride that delivered by an American artist may come off as tongue-in-cheek, but delivered by Ushio is completely straightforward and blanched. His situation is what it is, there is no reason to try to disguise it. Their ceiling is leaking and they may not be able to pay rent this month. Shikata ga nai, "It can't be helped." The two of them were brought together by the connection and agreement they shared when considering their art to be the absolute priority of their lives. This focus unfortunately caused a deterioration in other parts of their life together, particularly when Noriko has a child. The life of these struggling artists seems to have been punctuated by long periods of distraction. Because in reality, especially trying to live in New York City, art cannot always be the 24/7 preoccupation you want it to be, there is an alternative mindset that may take the place of despair, one that colors the world with the colors similar to the artist's palate, keeping the shelf prepped and continuously in view no matter what else is going on. Noriko and Ushio have long ago determined to live their lives the way they alone see their lives. One of full of color and life, necessary sadness and equally necessary resilience. I don't think that their perspectives lack recognition of the regrets they carry with them, as their discussion of their son's alcoholism similar to his father's demonstrates. The film utilizes close-ups of Noriko in particular to highlight the presence of pain, but it does not run rampant in her mind, knocking over tables. Instead it seems like a silent observer, taking in the reality around it without trying to escape in any way.The varied and abrupt cuts throughout the film create a patchwork that for me makes the film seem like I am looking through a photo album instead of following a narrative, and I like this. It's like walking through an art gallery where many different themes and impressions are introduced and it is up to the viewer to take in what he or she will and to assign relevance where it lies in each mind.