Walking into the movies, you at least expect to feel some emotion. Maybe emotions like excitement, happiness, sadness, hysteria, and others. But it isn’t everyday that you experience a multitude of emotions like I did when I saw Southpaw. You go through an emotional rollercoaster, a rollercoaster that is really worth it.

Southpaw is about the reigning middleweight boxing champion, Billy Hope, whose life turns upside down when his loving wife dies after a confrontation with another boxer. After losing his wife, the cycle continues as he loses all that matters to him including his daughter, his house, and his manager. When the cycle finally ends Hope decides he needs to change and turns to a former fighter who trains amateur boxers named Tick Willis, and although hesitant Wills helps train Hope as he fights for the life that he once had.

The movie itself was phenomenal. It was the perfect amount of action, sadness, and romance. All the actors were tremendous. Jake Gyllenhaal starring as Billy Hope and Rachel McAdams as Maureen showed the hurt and love that one can have when they lose the one they love.. Gyllenhaal was very committed, he even was put on a strict diet and exercise schedule in order to play Hope.  And Rachel McAdams is flawless and performs as gracefully as she did in the Notebook.

Another crucial part of every movie is the music that inhabits it. It contributes to the mood and tone of the entire movie and it really is used fantastic in this movie. One of the favorite songs that is at the end of the movie and really sums up and relationship between Billy Hope, his daughter and it is called Wise Man by Frank Ocean. It showcases the emotion behind the ending and the healing that occurred throughout the movie.

According to Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer, this movie scored a dull rating of 6/10. According to the consensus, Jake Gyllenhaal delivers an impressively committed performance (well yeah he had a workout and a diet to prepare him for this movie), but Southpaw beats it down with a dispiriting that pummels viewers with Genre Cliches. I find this review very harsh as I loved the movie. I didn’t find that there were enough cliches to make me stop watching, and that says a lot for me as I hate cheesy movies.  

Southpaw made me cry, smile, and laugh. This movie truly had it all. I would personally reccomend this movie to anyone who enjoys a sporty movie that can also entertain any girl.