November 4, 2015 -- This movie about a boxer struggling with his inner demons reminded me a lot of “Rocky,” but it is better than that, with a smart script and great performances by Jake Gyllenhaal as the boxer and Forest Whitaker as the trainer.

Right now, Jake Gyllenhaal (“Nightcrawler”) is as good an actor as you'll see on the screen these days, and Forest Whitaker (“The Last King of Scotland”) has that look of a man with a deep soul and wisdom — perfect for this role as a fight trainer who is also a combination psychologist and spiritual advisor. As good as these two actors are, they are matched by child actor Oona Laurence (“Lamb”) who plays the boxer's daughter, Leila. Rachel McAdams (“Midnight in Paris”) also gives an outstanding performance as the boxer's wife, Maureen.

The boxer, Billy Hope, has worked his way up from poverty to the world championship as a boxer, but there is a deep anger inside him. He often loses control of his temper. In the ring, he can only win when he goes into a rage against his opponent. A powerful puncher, he often wins by knockout, but he is not good at defending himself. His face is often cut by his opponents. His wife sees this and wants him to stop boxing because he is liable to become punch drunk.

Billy's anger boils over at a social event when he is taunted by another boxer, Miguel “Magic” Escobar (played by Miguel Gomez of “Bless Me, Ultima”). The ensuing fight leads to a tragic series of events in which Billy's daughter is taken away from him and he is banned from boxing. In order to get his daughter back, he has to take anger management therapy and find a job.

Billy goes to a local boxing gym run by Tick Wills (Whitaker) a former pro trainer, who trained the only boxer ever to beat Billy in the ring. Wills reluctantly agrees to train Billy, and even gives him a job cleaning the gym, which Billy reluctantly accepts. Slowly, Wills helps Billy get his life back together. A tougher challenge is winning back the respect of his daughter, Leila, who is angry and disappointed that her father let her down.

Billy trains hard. Boxing is the only thing he knows. He needs to get back in the ring so he can provide a home for his daughter. Eventually, he does get back in the fight game, but this time, he has better support from people who didn't “scatter like roaches” when the money dried up. All but one of his supporters (Jon Jon, played by Beau Knapp of “Super 8”) deserted him when he hit the skids. Now, he's got people in his corner who stood by him and helped him get back on his feet. There are no real surprises in this film. The story is straight up and honest, with no gimmicky surprises at the end.

This is a genre movie that has a lot in common with “Rocky” (another one from this franchise is in the works) but with better performances. It isn't really an underdog story, since Billy was a champion to start with. It is more about redemption and healing. It is about a father who takes his fatherhood for granted, loses it, and earns it back. The boxing scenes are outstanding in this film, but it is the relationships that make the movie, the relationships between Billy, his wife and daughter, and between Billy and Tick Wills, the wise trainer.

Jake Gyllenhaal gives an electric performance as an angry, wounded man in this film, and Forest Whitaker is great as the man who heals him. There are solid supporting performances in this film as well. The fight scenes are expertly staged. According to the extras on the disk, the actors did most of their own fighting and stunts in the ring. This is a great fight film. It rates an A.

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