It occurred to me, after I ejected my DVD from its player, that I've seen a lot of boxing flicks lately. A lot of boxing flicks, from the bad (Play It To The Bone) to the good (The Hurricane), to the in-between (Price Of Glory). Then it occurred to me that the two best flicks involving boxing I've seen in a long time - Billy Elliot and Girlfight - were very similar in tenor, yet each movies' protagonist wanted something entirely different out of boxing. I wonder if that Means something. The Story (WARNING: **spoilers contained below**) For Diana Guzman (Michelle Rodriguez), a mere can of whupass is just not enough: it's clear she has huge Issues with just about everything in her life. Diana's on the brink of being expelled from school for fighting; the latest time, she provoked a fight with Veronica (Shannon Walker Williams) over the way the popular Veronica dogged out Diana's slightly-overweight friend Marisol (Elisa Bocanegra). Besides being bored and unchallenged in school, Diana also has Issues with her present-in-body but absent-in-spirit father Sandro (Paul Calderon) and his mistreatment of her brother, Tiny (Ray Santiago) - not to mention her missing mother. Everyone in Diana's life feels she's headed for Big Trouble - until she finds a place where she can turn her violent tendencies into something productive: the Brooklyn boxing gym Sandro made Tiny join to work out under the tutelage of trainer Hector Soto (Jaime Tirelli). She's not welcomed with open arms, though; Hector's first reaction is that while she can work out there, she won't actually fight - after all, she is a girl. And she gets no love from the other boxers, either - including Ray (Victor Sierra), with whom she has an early, auspicious encounter, though Ray's trainer, Don (Louis Guss) and Ira (Thomas Barbour), owner of the gym, give her some slack. But even as she proves herself in the gym and in the ring, her biggest detractor is Cal (Herb Lovell), who absolutely insists that girls have no business in the squared circle - especially not with Cal's prize fighter, Adrian (Santiago Douglas). Adrian has dreams of leaving his father's garage behind and going pro, much to the delight of his hanger-on girlfriend Karina (Belqui Ortiz); but when Adrian and Diana make a connection, all that can change. The Upshot Allow me to gush for a moment: I absolutely adored this film. Partially because, just as I did with the Monica character in Love And Basketball, I strongly identified with Diana in many ways. We shared the same hard-headedness over not being allowed to be included in Boy's Stuff (for me, it was drumming), and though my father was nowhere near the level of dysfunction as Diana's, I certainly could Feel her when she griped at Sandro for his double standard of supporting His Son, but not her, in her pursuit of boxing (or, as she says, anything else). But mostly, I loved Girlfight because it felt honest, and real; if this film is not Based On A True Story, it just oughta be. I didn't perceive an off-note from any of the main cast members; the whole crew gave Girlfight a touch of authenticity of emotion that Price Of Glory, a 2000 boxing flick involving Latino boxers, came close to but didn't quite accomplish. If I had to single out individuals from this solid group, I'd say newcomer Michelle Rodriguez's intense performance as Diana, Santiago Douglas' smart turn as the uncertain about his place in life Adrian, and first-time feature director Karyn Kusama's eye for a great shot (her direction of the prize fights was nothing less than Brilliant), were but three of many things that made this film work for me. And, apparently for the folks at the Cannes and Sundance Film Festivals, who gave Girlfight three awards between them. I hate that Girlfight didn't play in as many theaters or for as long as it should have; it's a film that deserved more attention than it got, especially with women becoming more involved in the pro boxing arena. Here's hoping that Girlfight will get that much-deserved attention in video sales and rentals. The "Black Factor"    [ObDisclaimer: We Are Not A Monolith] Actually, the "Latino Factor", if I may. As with Price Of Glory, I give Girlfight props for not depicting Latinos in typical Hollywood stereotypes, though Diana's father Sandro came closest with a lazy/drunk/deadbeat dad characterization. That Sandro being what he was, was important in understanding Diana's character (or that Paul Calderon, did a good job in a limited role), didn't make Sandro any more easier to reconcile as a near-stereotype. But as I've said with regard to Bad Black Characters in other movies, there are some (keyword) Bad Latinos out there, too. I'm just grateful that more mainstream movies like Price Of Glory and Girlfight are finally providing some long-needed balance. DVD Thingies If I wasn't already sold on the value of the movie, I'm not sure most of the DVD "extras" would've helped changed my mind. On the other hand, the "making-of featurette" did reinforce my good feeling about this movie, if only because the cast and crew seemed very sincere about this project. They were refreshingly not at all like the yada yada yada talking heads that too often invade these types of featurettes with their fake smiles and carefully-rehearsed happy talk. Oh, did I mention the fact that, somehow, the promised dual widescreen/pan & scan, didn't seem to be transferred onto my rented copy? It sucked to not have the widescreen version to watch. And now I'm curious: was it just my copy, or were all the Girlfight DVD's pressed incorrectly? Bammer's Bottom Line Easily the best boxing movie I've seen in years; and way up there in the Best of 2000, period, category. I'm just mad that the short-sightedness of whomever decides where certain movies can be seen, didn't allow me to see this gem of a film until this weekend. Ah, Podunkville...the flicks we miss. GIRLFIGHT: Must...resist...urg IT'S A KNOCKOUT! oops back to top And that's the way I see it. Rose "Bams" Cooper 3BlackChicks Enterprises™ Copyright Rose Cooper, 2001 EMAIL: bams@3blackchicks.com    ICQ: 7760005 http://www.3blackchicks.com/ http://www.evenbetter.com/?partner=1987

Use the feedback form below to send your comments to Bams