Against the Ropes

Against the Ropes is a 2004 American sports drama film directed by Charles S. Dutton (in his directorial debut) and starring Meg Ryan and Omar Epps. The story is a fictionalized account of boxing manager Jackie Kallen, the first woman to achieve success in the sport. Kallen has a bit part in the film playing a reporter, and a few lines in the scene where the press interviews the principal characters.

Against the Ropes
Theatrical release poster
Directed byCharles S. Dutton
Produced byRobert W. Cort
David Madden
Written byCheryl Edwards
StarringMeg Ryan
Omar Epps
Tony Shalhoub
Tim Daly
Kerry Washington
Charles S. Dutton
Music byMichael Kamen
CinematographyJack N. Green
Edited byEric L. Beason
Production
company
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
  • February 20, 2004 (2004-02-20)
Running time
111 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$39 million
Box office$6.6 million

The film was shot primarily at the Wolstein Center in Cleveland, Ohio, United States and Hamilton, Ontario, Canada at the Copps Coliseum.[1] Against the Ropes grossed less than $6 million in the US and was panned by critics for its resemblance to other boxing films.

Plot

At a young age, Jackie Kallen learns about boxing with her father and uncle in a small gym. Later, she becomes assistant to a Cleveland boxing promoter. Her boss then begins doing business with Sam LaRocca, a sports manager, during a middleweight championship fight.

Challenged after the contest to demonstrate an understanding of the fight game, she proceeds to embarrass LaRocca, who then offers to sell the loser's contract to her for the price of one dollar. She accepts, only to discover upon visiting the fighter in his home that he is addicted to drugs and enmeshed in a dangerous and self-destructive lifestyle.

Enter Luther Shaw, a small-time hood. Kallen watches in horror and fascination as Shaw pummels the former middleweight champ. She offers to manage him professionally. Shaw is at first hesitant, but eventually signs on with her.

Because of LaRocca's influence, Kallen can't find Shaw a fight anywhere in Ohio, so the two are forced to go on the road until Shaw makes a name for himself. Jackie begins to get swept up in all the attention she gets for being the first female boxing manager. Her attention eventually shifts from Shaw to her own media persona as her fighter's number of wins continues to climb.

Finally realizing that she is not paying enough attention to her only client, Kallen agrees to sell Shaw's contract to LaRocca on the condition that he be given a championship fight. LaRocca agrees, setting Shaw up for a shot at the title before he could be ready. Kallen arrives at the fight and stands in Shaw's corner as he pulls off an upset and wins the championship.

Cast

Reception

Against the Ropes was a box office bomb, grossing only $6,614,280, with an estimated budget of $39,000,000. It opened up at No. 8 at the box office, grossing $3,038,546 in the opening weekend. The film was released on February 20, 2004 to 1,601 theaters (widest release) gathering an average of $1,897 per theater. The film closed its box office run after seven weeks, gathering a total of $5,884,190 from the domestic market and $730,090 from overseas for an international total of $6,614,280.[2]

Critical reception of the film was largely negative. Rotten Tomatoes reports a "Rotten" rating of 12% based on 132 reviews and an average rating of 4.22/10, summarizing it as "a bland, dumbed-down package of sports cliches."[3] However, the film did receive some positive reviews; Roger Ebert gave it 3 stars out of 4, remarking:

"It works near the end of "Against the Ropes," a biopic about Jackie Kallen, who was (and is) the first female fight promoter in the all-male world of professional boxing. It works, and another cliche works, too: the Big Fight scene, right out of "Rocky" and every other boxing movie, in which the hero gets pounded silly but then somehow, after becoming inspired between rounds, comes back and is filled with skill and fury."[4]

References
  1. "Internet Movie Database - List of Films shot in Hamilton, Ontario". Retrieved 2008-01-29.
  2. Against the Ropes (2004). Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2010-12-03.
  3. Against the Ropes Movie Reviews, Pictures. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2019-07-25.
  4. Against the Ropes :: rogerebert.com :: Reviews. Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2010-12-03.
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