CHRISTY Reviewed by GREG KING
Stars: Sydney Sweeney, Ben Foster, Merritt Wever, Ethan Embry, Cole L Coleman, Jess Gabor, Katy O’Brian, Tony Cavalero, Bryan Hibbard, Gilbert Cruz.
There have been a number of great boxing movies including standouts like Somebody Up There Likes Me, The Great White Hope, The Champ, Scorsese’s Raging Bull, Rocky, Rocky III, Creed, Clint Eastwood’s Oscar winning Million Dollar Baby, Cinderella Man, The Fighter, etc. And now we can add the biopic Christy to this fine subgenre of sports movies about underdogs succeeding against the odds.
Christy Martin was a female boxer who in the 90s was a pioneer of the sport in the USA and a trailblazer for other female boxers who followed her. She was the best-known female boxer in the US. Written by Australian filmmaker David Michod (Animal Kingdom, etc) and Mirrah Foulkes (Judy & Punch, etc) Christy is a warts and all biopic that follows her journey. Martin’s journey was previously told in a 2021 Netflix documentary.
Born to a conservative family in West Virginia, Christy (played here by an almost unrecognisable Sydney Sweeney) had to hide her sexuality due to the naked disapproval of her homophobic mother Joyce (Merritt Wever, from Marriage Story, etc) who is dismissive of her relationship with girlfriend Rosie (Jess Gabor). After winning an amateur boxing tournament Christy begins to train at a local gym and soon catches the eye of Jim Martin (Ben Foster, from Hell Or High Water, etc) who reluctantly agrees to become her trainer. As she proves her worth and ability in the ring Martin begins to become more controlling and exerts more influence over her life. Christy’s mother approves of Jim’s influence over her daughter. Martin eventually marries Christy despite a twenty-five-year age difference.
Boxing under the monicker of “the coal miner’s daughter” she became the first female boxer to grace the cover of Sports Illustrated. A meeting with legendary promoter Don King (played by Chad L Coleman) promises success and wealth, except Jim seems unwilling to fully embrace the opportunity and her career begins to stall. Their relationship becomes increasingly toxic and exploitative.
But Christy is no mere repeat of Eastwood’s 2004 boxing drama Million Dollar Baby as it also delves into the darker world of domestic violence that she endured. Superbly choreographed by Michael Jamorski and Walter Garcia, the boxing scenes are staged with a visceral edge and a gritty realism. Michod’s handling of the material is pretty straightforward, but he delves into the darker nature of domestic abuse in the film’s second half that many may find a little unsettling. The film spans some twenty years and there are some moments during the 135 minute run time that drag a little.
A buffed Sweeney delivers a superb performance here, immersing herself in an intense physical training regime to bring grit and authenticity to her role. But she also captures her sense of vulnerability. It’s a committed performance that is easily one of her best and most fearless. Foster is good at playing a sleazy type, and here he is hidden beneath a weird comb over and a paunch is very slimy as the mean-spirited, cruel, overbearing, emotionally manipulative and possessive Martin. Werritt is appropriately cold and aloof as Christy’s disapproving and judgemental mother. Both Martin and Joyce come across as unlikeable characters.
Germain McMicking’s cinematography imbues the material with the look of the 90s. Production design from Chad Keith (a regular collaborator with filmmaker Jeff Nichols) is also very good.
★★★☆
