Will another Russell Crowe movie become a hit on Netflix following the likes of Land of Bad and 3:10 to Yuma? Time will tell, but we definitely think the Oscar-winning actor's latest movie to arrive on Netflix is worth a watch — the 2005 inspirational boxing movie Cinderella Man.
Based on the true story of boxer James J. Braddock, the movie focuses on Braddock and his family's struggles during the Great Depression in the 1930s after his boxing career seemed all but over. However, given one last chance to fight in what was supposed to be an easy win for his opponent, Braddock beat the odds and began a career comeback that would see him get the opportunity to fight for the heavyweight championship of the world; a real-life Rocky-esque tale (though to be clear, Rocky itself was based on another real-life boxer, Chuck Wepner).
Crowe stars as Braddock alongside Renée Zellweger as his wife Mae and Paul Giamatti as his trainer Joe Gould. Ron Howard directed the movie, which is "Certified Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes and earned three Oscar nominations: Best Supporting Actor for Giamatti, Best Editing and Best Makeup.
Cinderella Man really is an inspiring story, as it spends a lot of time with the Braddock family outside of the ring as they struggle during the Great Depression, not only financially but personally as Braddock must contend with the shame of not being able to provide for his family. That only makes it that much more uplifting when his story turns and he begins to go on the fairytale run that inspires the moniker the movie's title is based on.
While it's easy to compare Cinderella Man to Rocky, boxing movies in general really offer a lot of opportunities to inspire audiences. That's because it's our hero going alone into the ring, taking the hits, which we can often feel along with them. That is especially true in Cinderella Man, as they shot some of the fight scenes to make it look like the opponent is punching us, the audience.
Cinderella Man is a movie I remember fondly seeing in the movie theaters with my family, so I'm excited to have the chance to watch it again on Netflix this month. You can too if you have a Netflix subscription; if not, it is available to rent via digital on-demand platforms as well.
Watch the Cinderella Man trailer right here for a sneak peek:
