Though there is a lot of boxing in this film, this is not a boxing movie, but rather his story and the story of the family that inspired him to fight back against prejudice and hopelessness, to rise to heights that would inspire a nation. Jim Braddock was a depression-era boxer who everybody thought was down for the count. Though Howard fictionalizes his subjects, and does not pretend to make documentaries, he does accurately depict the feeling and the major points of his subjects. Nobody does true-story heroism like Ron Howard, and few can do heroes like Russell Crowe. My heart was firmly lodged in my throat for the last hour and a half of The Cinderella Man. Carrying the hopes and dreams of the disenfranchised on his shoulders, Braddock rocketed through the ranks until this underdog chose to do the unthinkable: take on the heavyweight champ of the world, the unstoppable Max Baer (Craig Bierko), renowned for having killed two men in the ring. Suddenly, the ordinary working man became the mythic athlete. However Braddock, fueled by something beyond mere competition, kept winning. In a last-chance bid to help his family, Braddock returned to the ring. Driven by love, honor, and an incredible dose of grit, he willed an impossible dream to come true. Braddock never relinquished his determination. His career appeared to be finished, he was unable to pay the bills, his family-the only thing that mattered to him-was in danger, and he was even forced to go on Public Relief. By the early 1930s, the impoverished ex-prizefighter was seemingly as broken-down, beaten-up, and out-of-luck as much of the rest of the American populace who had hit rock bottom. Braddock (Russell Crowe), aka the Cinderella Man, was to become one of the most surprising sports legends in history. During the Great Depression, common-man hero James J.
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