Christy

Caught Christy as the Regal Mystery Movie. Not a big sports person and have never heard of Christy Martin prior to this. The film spans over 20 years, and thats just too much. A storied career like this deserves more time. Maybe a mini series?

Positives!

+Ben Foster melts into the role of Jim and you'll despise him!

+Tragic story of how everyone failed Christy Martin.

+Some good tunes!

+Sydney gives another okay performance.

Negatives!

-Characters hardly age in 20 years, just some hair and outfit changes.

-Plots are thrown in for a few minutes then never mentioned again.

-Lacks emotional depth.

-Doesn't go deep enough into storylines that could have improved movie flow.

Honestly, I wasn't expecting to like Christy. It was mostly okay, more of a drama than sports movie. But the drama is too shallow to elicit deeper thoughts. However, it feels like a movie that people will enjoy because it gives the bare minimum to get interest.

-GremlinLord615!

-Full Review on Youtube!

In the last 30 years there has been at least one pugilistic film released every year. Movies about female boxers are still rare. 2000 gave us Michelle Rodriguez in Girlfight. Hilary Swank won a Best Actress Oscar for her role in Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby in 2004. In 2014 India gave us Mary Kom. Last year (2024) we had The Fire Inside, a biopic about Claressa "T-Rex" Shields. And now, just in time for award season we have Sydney Sweeney bringing the story of Christy Salters to the screen.

I knew nothing about Christy Salters going into my screening. This naïve, rambunctious scrapper from West Virginia started her pugilistic journey by entering a local strong man contest in 1989. She kept boxing around the area where she lived winning small purses. By 1995 she was being scouted, taking an offer Jim Martin (Ben Foster) to train her. He got her fights, and she continued to get noticed until she got a meeting with the infamous Don King (Chad L. Coleman), at which point her career skyrocketed.

This is a movie about Christy taken in by a less than scrupulous man, about Christy who preferred women at a time when that was frowned upon, about Christy who is constantly at odds with her religiously snobbish mother Joyce Salters (Merritt Wever). Joyce does everything in her power to come between Christy and her real love Rosie (Jess Gabor). We follow the twists and turns of Christy's life, and the painful existence that attached itself to her.

Sweeney and Foster electrify the screen with their performances. Sure, at times it does feel like another boxing biopic. At other times it is engaging, like riding a roller coaster of emotions with the title character. Sweeney conveys the full range of those emotions, sometimes with just her eyes. Foster embodies the creepy Jim without any sense of self-consciousness. I have always liked Ben Foster no matter what the roll. This is a good bad one for him. And the final act is worth it when it comes. You just wait and see what hits you.

I saw this film at the AFI Film Festival in Hollywood. The true story of Christy Martin (Sydney Sweeney) who popularized women's boxing. Some of the initial boxing montages are unnecessary (you will get the point that Christy was good quickly) but recommended for Sweeney's performance and especially Ben Foster's performance as her jerk of trainer/husband. Direction and cinematography were adequate. Bottom line: a good film but not an outstanding one.

I don't know why some gave high praise except superb performances not much else to it. I love Ben Foster in anything and Sydney Sweeney is exceptional in any role; love them both! Some parts felt slow and some unfortunate decisions but it's a great movie for what it is glad I saw it. Reminds me a little bit of I, Tonya without the amazing soundtrack.

TIFF #3

Third film I've seen at TIFF, but easily the best so far. It's an extremely well made film with great performances. However I didn't feel the film did enough to rise above the conventions of its sub-genre. It has the expected training and fight montages, the pop songs of the era in the background (Young MC - Bust a Move), the rise and fall trajectory, etc. This is not an inherent criticism, just an observation that the beats felt familiar. Also because the story spans across many years, there were a number of subplots that are touched upon that I wanted to see more of. I especially wanted to see more of Chad L. Coleman playing Don King who absolutely shined in the role.

One of the most impressive aspects of the film is that it's a true story. Although I wanted to the film to go deeper on certain storylines, it definitely whet the appetite to learn more. The real Christy Martin even came out on stage with much of the cast and crew for a post-film Q&A. Even though the premiere was the night before, it was awesome everyone came back out the next morning to talk about the film. Everyone's passion for the project was evident, and I think the film will find success post-festival.