Dickie was a onetime successful boxer and hometown hero in Irish working class Boston. Because of his loss at a major fight against Sugar Ray Leonard, he's now a loser crack addict. His half brother Mickey is also a fighter, with Dickie as his trainer and their mom as the manager. Mickey is frustrated since Dickie can't do his job well, missing training, always getting high with his friends. When he gets badly beaten at a fight, he realizes that he has to drop both his mom and brother. He starts a relationship with Charlene, a feisty waitress who motivates him to pursue his dream. One night, the brothers get into a row with the police, and Dickie is sent to prison. When he sees an HBO documentary that he thought was about his boxing days but is really about crack addicts, he is humiliated. Micky on the other hand, has started training with a new manager. Micky starts winning and gets his stride. Dickie, now on the straight path gets out of prison, and pleads with Charlene to hire him back. The brothers train intensely leading up to a big fight with an undefeated Shea Neary in London. Mickey is pummeled, but when Dickie pushes him with a moving pep talk, Mickey fights back and knocks Neary out.
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Best part of story, including ending:
I like the idea of an older brother trying to win back the faith of his younger brother, and that this was based on a true story.
Best scene in story:
When Dickie watches the documentary in prison, and made an event out of it, only to discover its real subject.
Opinion about the main character:
Dickie is such a character, a lost goofball. It's good to see he finds redemption in the end.
