Girlfight (2000)

reviewed by
James Brundage


You can take the girl out of the fight, but can you take the fight out of the girl? Well, as all of those overcoming-the-odds, beating-the-hell-out-of-the-adversary movies of recent and past would have us believe, no. Instead, you can channel it, make it into a focused rage that is capable of winning matches and perhaps even capturing a viewer's interest for a few hours.

While Girlfight may result in a general sense of control and the winning of a few matches on the behalf of this female boxer Diana (Michelle Rodregiuz), it does not capture our interest. In fact, this two-hour movie feels like a three hour movie, has almost no character development to boot, and has all of the clichéd cinematography and director that makes me wonder if these cinematic craftsmen learned their trade off of a crackerjack box.

In the beginning of Girlfight, Diana goes into duke-out mode after a girl sleeps with a guy that a friend of hers wants. This apparently has been her fourth fight of the semester, and the principle wants her act cleaned up or, of course, it's expulsion.

Before I go on with my singular-minded tirade of why one should avoid Girlfight at all costs, let me ask an open-ended question: how many times have we seen this before? Really. Isn't this the formula for a boxing/overcoming troubles movie: person A is really angry, gets threatened, gets ship shape, and we all live happily ever after?

This formula is basically the path that Girlfight follows to the most clichéd ending ever: slow motion hugging with a freeze frame and a high-grain shot. Gimme a break or break someone's neck, please. How this film got the Grand Jury at Sundance is beyond me.

Girlfight does have its nice points, however. There is a fascinating relationship between Diana and her father (Paul Cauldron) and Rodregiuz does a wonderful job of expressing the trials and triumphs female boxing. Yet this relationship could stand a lot more development instead of the schlock treatment it gets (only one scene actually affects you).

To it's credit, Girlfight goes the Raging Bull method in boxing matches, have each fight be a quieter, well-photographed routine instead of having each punch by a slap across the face by Thor's hammer.

But all of this doesn't get over the fact that Girlfight really never goes anywhere. When the parental conflict is resolved, the little steam that Girlfight was running on runs dry, and you still end up being subjected to two boring boxing matches and a helluva lot of psuedodrama before this dog of a film finishes. And, when the two hours are over, the only thing you'll get out of watching Girlfight is a headache and an enjoyable period of mutual complaints with your friends, and unless that's your idea of a pleasant evening, neither is Girlfight.

RATING:  **1/2
MPAA Rating: R

Director: Karyn Kusama Producer: Sarah Green, Martha Griffin, Maggie Renzi Writer: Karyn Kusama Starring: Michelle Rodriguez, Jaime Tirelli, Paul Calderon, Santiago Douglas, Ray Santiago, Elisa Bocanegra, Shannon Walker Williams

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