Review: Two Fists, One Heart

Set in Perth, Daniel Amalm plays an Italian-Australian boxer who would rather forego his training in favour of pursuing Anglo Aussie girl Jessica Marais. Amalm’s Sicilian father/trainer (played by Ennio Fanastichini) used to be a boxer himself, and doesn’t understand (nor tolerate) this sudden change. Amalm, meanwhile doesn’t understand why the old man pushes him so hard to be a success, though the truth about the end of his boxing career eventually comes out. Marais, for her part, fails to understand the uber-macho, violent boxing culture Amalm has been steeped in his whole life, and she’s rather repulsed by it. Rai Fazio (the film’s screenwriter) plays an ex-con fresh out of prison, also a promising pugilist whom Fanastichini takes on board instead of his reticent son. Tim Minchin turns up as Marais’ arty, smart-arsey brother.

 

There’s a market for this boofy, blokey, second-generation Aussie boxing drama stuff from debut feature director Shawn Seet (Who is Malaysian-Australian, apparently) and screenwriter Rai Fazio. I’m not that audience in the slightest, but I’m sure this will be enjoyed by some of you out there, even if it has a title that sounds an awful lot like a Jimmy Barnes album. All I can do is give you my own take on the film, so if this story resonated with you in some way, that’s awesome. I found it tiresome, clichéd, and distressingly unfocussed.

 

I detest boxing in reality, but I like a good boxing movie (“Rocky”, “Raging Bull”, “The Harder They Fall”, “Requiem for a Heavyweight”, “Rocky III”), but this isn’t a good boxing movie at all. Combined with all of the ethnic/cultural clash stuff this 2009 boxing drama/interracial romance/drama is a bit tedious, I’m afraid. The fact that the lead character played by former “Home and Away” heartthrob (and apparently now musician) Daniel Amalm, came across like a common thug with little charm, didn’t help either, and Amalm doesn’t really register much on screen in terms of charisma or presence, unlike his memorable stint on “Home and Away”. He’s convincing in all aspects of the role, just completely dull.

 

However, it’s really former boxer Fazio’s script that’s the problem here, not Mr. Amalm (even though he’s basically early 90s Alex Dimitriades with abs, let’s face it). It’s the character and story (which is apparently semi-autobiographical) that I rejected. The entire world on show here is one that will appeal to quite a few Australians no doubt it, especially those with similar ethnic/immigrant backgrounds to the characters, or those interested in boxing or this kind of posturing macho douchebaggery. I just find myself rolling my eyes at this sort of stuff, it’s just so ridiculously macho, posturing, and thuggish, none of which describes yours truly (I have scoliosis, for starters, so my posture is terrible. See what I did there? Just checking to see if you’re awake!). Amalm’s macho wanker is only different from the other macho wankers in the film because the film says so. I think I’m meant to see the Amalm character in a positive light, but I actually found myself siding with the Jessica Marais character in her observations of Amalm’s world, and not just because I’m Anglo-Australian (I live in the Western Suburbs of Sydney, so I’m working class through and through, Marais’ character is from a more upscale background). I think I’m meant to view Amalm’s character as different from his boofhead brethren, but he really isn’t. His differences to his uber-macho father really have nothing to do with the problems I actually have with the Amalm character. His desire to change is motivated solely by pussy, he’s hardly a man of character. “Two Fists, No Brain, Swinging Dick” would be a better title for this one I think. This is the kind of film where arseholes who mistreat women are beaten up by thugs whose only distinguishing feature from the recipients of the beating is that they only hit men, not women. It’s a distinction, and I get it, but it doesn’t entirely excuse the violence nor make it particularly interesting to watch, especially when I already felt like the Amalm character wasn’t exactly a shining example of humanity.

 

The mixture here of ex-cons and boxing may be somewhat accurate (and it paints boxing in a very negative light, seemingly unintentionally), but it’s unappealing to me personally. When you add in the macho Italiano, I just find myself unable to get into it (and to be honest, the film could be about Greek-Australians and not be any different whatsoever. Maybe even Anglo-Australians, to be honest). Others will receive the film more warmly, and that’s the great thing about different opinions from people who come to films from a different perspective perhaps. However, even then you’ve surely got to acknowledge that this is pretty old-hat stuff and that it seriously lacks focus. Is it a boxing film? A father-son flick? An ethnic drama? Multicultural/class-based romance? It seems to be trying to be all of the above, but there’s not enough emphasis on any of these things for it to really work. It just ends up looking unfocussed, underdone, and clichéd. The film takes so damn long for Amalm to actually focus on boxing that it ends up having to rush to get to the ending. Sure, at least by that point the film was at least headed in a clear direction, but it was too late. Meanwhile, the resolution to the romance between Amalm and Marais involves a literally non-existent lack of reasoning. It just is what it is because the film needs it to be that way.

 

The one brief bright spot is comedian (Or is he a musician? It’s hard to tell because I don’t think he’s overly funny or a good musician usually) Tim Minchin, whom I normally find overrated. Essentially playing himself here as Jessica Marais’ artistic smart-arse brother (by way of Tim Friedman of The Whitlams perhaps), he’s at least interesting and idiosyncratic in an otherwise very blah film. Unfortunately, the filmmakers don’t like his character nearly as much as I did, because he ends up watching the big fight on a TV at the end. The filmmakers have clearly sympathised with the wrong people (and once again, it’s not because of an Anglo vs. Italian thing, it’s macho boofhead bullshit I have a problem with. The Italian stuff is just cringe-y cliché stuff that isn’t my thing), to the point where those who shouldn’t be on Amalm’s side end up on his side for…reasons. The whole film paints a sociopathic view of the boxing world in Australia and then tries to excuse the abusive father away by ‘prison messed me up’. Or ‘I pissed away my Olympic dream by getting thrown in prison’. I wasn’t buying it, it’s half-arsed, if not downright morally repugnant. The only way this film and its lead character could’ve been saved for me is if he completely abandoned the world he had been living in and evolved with his new girlfriend. Like I said, though, the director and writer clearly don’t feel the same way about the main character (nor his psychotic thug of a father) as I do, though.

 

A bit dull and low-key, this Aussie boxing movie/ethnic romance-drama hybrid just isn’t very good and lacked focus for me. However, it contains elements that really aren’t terribly appealing to me, yet may be much more appealing to others, so don’t just take my word for it. Essentially “Rocky” meets a macho “Strictly Ballroom”, someone out there will probably like it, just not me.

 

Rating: D+