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Raging Jake

"Southpaw" is a movie built on formula from start to finish. That's not always a bad thing if you find some way to make the formula compelling. Thankfully, "Southpaw" succeeds in that.

This is a visceral and immersive boxing picture, which effectively places viewers in the ring during some of the pivotal fight scenes. Even when you want to sit in your seat and predict - probably accurately - how the scene is going to end, director Antoine Fuqua infuses scenes with enough energy to keep the audience engage. This is his best film since 2001's "Training Day".

The script by Kurt Sutter, creator of TV's "Sons of Anarchy", was a major attraction of this movie. Sutter's show was one the most harrowing and nuanced portrayals of family, always surprising viewers from week-to-week. Coming from such an acclaimed and complex series, "Southpaw" may come off as far too safe for Sutter's fan base. Fortunately, he writes individual scenes that allow the cast to really sink their teeth into the material.

There is no one better lately to really disappear into a role than Jake Gyllenhaal. You've seen the stills and read the news; Gyllenhaal spent some time at the gym to bulk up to play a boxer named Billy Hope. That's impressive but not nearly as impressive has how much he dives into the psyche of Billy. At once, Billy is brash and confident, lost and vulnerable. Gyllenhaal runs the gamut of emotions required to play Billy in another bravura performance from the actor (if you haven't seen "Nightcrawler", I urge you to do so on Netflix. His performance was the best of 2014).

As the film opens, Billy is on top of the world. He is a championship boxer, who has found fame and fortune, bringing himself up from a troubled childhood. He has a beautiful wife, Maureen (Rachel McAdams), and daughter, Leila (Oona Laurence). When tragedy strikes - as shown in the trailer to the film - Billy finds himself in a downward spiral and his life and everything he has worked hard for begins to slip away from him. He must fight to keep his daughter and regain what he once had.

Billy begins training with Tick Willis (Forest Whitaker) at his gym, so he can get himself to where he once was. The fight back to the top is a tried-and-true trope of the boxing genre but what the actors do in every scene makes the movie compelling. Billy isn't always easy to get along with and is used to getting what he wants. Tick is tough, but not without his own baggage, and doesn't let the remnants of Billy's celebrity stop him from training the way he thinks he should be trained. Whitaker and Gyllenhaal have a nice patter as two damaged individuals, who need each other in equal doses.

At the end of the day, this is Gyllenhaal's movie, which he commands with ferocity. His scenes with the young Laurence are tender and moving, which gives "Southpaw" its beating heart. Laurence is a wonderful young actress.

It'll be easy to compare this movie to the likes of "Rocky" or "Raging Bull", two superior films that loom heavily over "Southpaw". Even so, the film is an entertaining, solid flick, which we should be thankful for now before we reach the cinematic wasteland that typically is August.