Resurrecting the Champ

Name: Resurrecting the Champ
Genre: Drama, Sport
Released: August 24, 2007
Duration: 112 min
Rating: 55
Cast: Josh Hartnett, Samuel L. Jackson

2007

METASCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 28 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 17 Ratings

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7.2

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7.2	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 17 Ratings

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Resurrecting The Champ

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Movie Details & Credits

Yari Film Group Releasing | Release Date: August 24, 2007 | PG-13

Starring: Josh Hartnett, Samuel L. Jackson

Summary: One night after leaving the paper, sports reporter Erik Kernan sees a gang of thugs beating up a homeless man. He notices how well the grizzly old fellow can take a punch. He bobs, he weaves, he lands a few good ones himself until Erik chases the thugs away, who leave jeers of how they beat "The Champ" in their wake. Erik realizes he hasOne night after leaving the paper, sports reporter Erik Kernan sees a gang of thugs beating up a homeless man. He notices how well the grizzly old fellow can take a punch. He bobs, he weaves, he lands a few good ones himself until Erik chases the thugs away, who leave jeers of how they beat "The Champ" in their wake. Erik realizes he has just rescued the legendary "Battling Bob Satterfield" and stumbled on the story of a lifetime. Rumor had it that Satterfield was dead...and yet here he was. An article about the rise, fall, and resurrection of a former heavyweight contender could get Erik's career off the ropes and breathe life into his confidence. A story like this could be the title shot he has been waiting for; a chance to change his life forever. (Yari Film Group Releasing)… Expand

Director: Rod Lurie

Genre(s): Drama, Sport

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 112 min

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Critic Reviews

Zack Haddad

It is great to see a boxing movie that portrays both boxing and Jackson in different lights. Read full review

Roger Ebert

Jackson disappears into his role, completely convincing, but then he usually is. What a fine actor. He avoids pitfalls like making Champ a maudlin tearjerker, looking for pity. He's realistic, even philosophical, about his life and what happened to him. Read full review

Peter Rainer

By skewing the film into a father-son inspirational saga, the filmmakers sell out the best possibilities in their material. Lurie clearly wants Resurrecting the Champ to be "more" than a sports movie, or a newspaper movie. Ironically, he ends up with less. Read full review

John Anderson

Overly sentimentalized and the execution is slack. If not for Samuel L. Jackson's performance as the ravaged boxer, "Champ" would be of limited interest. Read full review

Robert Wilonsky

This isn't great raw material, though Lurie and his screenwriters try their best to portray Erik as some guilt-ridden evildoer who's perpetrated a great fraud. Read full review

Joanne Kaufman

The movie itself -- which deals (not very interestingly) with the issue of journalistic integrity and (very predictably) with father-son relationships -- doesn't pack much of a wallop. Read full review

Lou Lumenick

Well, it smells, all right, but authentic isn't the word I'd use for this maudlin male weepie, a compendium of the worst clichés of sports and journalism movies. Read full review

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User Reviews

JeremyP.

Aug 23, 2007

Samuel L Jackson should win an Oscar for this role. His potrayal of the Champ is spot on and very authentic.