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This film features a impressive cast, depicting the true story of coach Ingle, who mentored a brash Sheffield youth from Yemeni immigrant parents. Dubbed “Prince” Naseem Hamed, the youngster was coached to stand up to racist bullies and transformed into a celebrity titleholder in the 1990s. Ingle cultivated his showboating confidence and lethal fists, but after becoming rich, Hamed turned against his coach, cutting him out and making him a blend of Falstaff and Danny Rose.

Cast and Characters

Pierce Brosnan portrays the trainer; Amir El-Masry embodies the role of the prince, and Toby Stephens is the assertive London promoter Warren, who recognized the goldmine that the coach had discovered.

Film’s Shortcomings

Yet, the movie honestly lacks the Prince’s agility: the boxing sequences run smoothly, but the crucial drama in between is consistently flat and one-note. It lacks nuance or contrast in the depiction of the protagonist himself, and the actor, an otherwise excellent talent, isn’t given the opportunity to display any subtlety or much of what might make his role really interesting – even though he’s obviously been training and looks very plausible in the boxing arena.

Problems with Script and Sound

The drama is often burdened by utilitarian, expositional dialogue that tell you precisely what is happening and what we are supposed to be thinking (“Your journey began your boxing journey at age seven …”). This is the kind of script that digital producers call “double-screen”, ensuring you understand what’s going on while you’re viewing the film but also glancing at your device. And, the score is overpowering, sometimes nearly overwhelming, particularly in the scene where the boxer gets too excited calling on Warren in his palatial home.

Acting and Pivotal Scenes

While El-Masry and Brosnan do their very best, their relationship doesn’t quite ignites, and the big set-piece boxing moments are frequently disappointingly truncated. A key scene is certainly when, goaded beyond endurance in the gym one day by the boxer as a delusional “elder”, Ingle in fact proposes to get in the ring and box him. Everyone in the gym is shocked and uncomfortable. In what way is this insanely risky standoff going to unfold? How precisely the outcome? Surely the Prince is going to kill him? Alternatively will he sentimentally hold back? It’s not clear.

Highlights and Humor

This isn’t to imply that there aren’t some nice jabs. The actor elicits humor when his character informs a journalist what he’s instructing the youths from his neighborhood: to oppose prejudice and when you meet a offender, “Hit them in the bollocks”. It’s funny too when the boxer squirms at the ridiculous antics the coach makes him do in the early days: posing as the “beast from the East”.

Storyline and Final Thoughts

Regarding the falling out, the movie shows this as being worsened by a revealing book that Ingle is allegedly authored (a story element evidently adapted from another source), and there is an intriguingly imagined final conversation – however the emotional tribute that the boxer is supposed to have paid to Ingle after his passing is merely referenced in the closing credits, and not shown on screen. Some engaging content in this film, but the punches don’t land.

The film was shown at the London film festival and is in UK and Irish theaters from January 9.