Movie Review-The Fighter

When a film has several Oscar nominees in the cast and has been favorably reviewed by a number of critics, it can be considered for a look.
Of course, I'm thinking "Rocky", part V-sans Sylvester. No, I did not expect Mark Wahlberg to be a Rocky Balboa character, but the fight game genre often comes loaded with the personality we've come to expect(Raging Bull,etc.,etc.). Prior to watching the film, I had no knowledge of its setting, other than the required gym scenes. To my surprise it was shot in New England-Lowell, Mass to be exact. So, here I was, at the movies, watching a film and almost dead center in the setting.
The real life character, Micky Ward, and his brother, are well known Lowell locals. Real people who put Lowell on the map, for however brief. It was not really a fight flick, but actually, a family story. A story of changing circumstances, missed opportunities, hard work, bad luck, bad choices, good luck, and love. It also contains a host of minor characters: the Mom(Oscar award winner), the older brother(Oscar award winner Christian Bale), Micky's step father, and all his sisters. What a treat!
The city itself was not notably explored or featured-probably a good thing. It seems to be a place that has fallen on hard times, like Detroit, Flint, Cleveland, Buffalo, and such. The sport of boxing did not win many more fans after this effort, nor should it. But, the ending was satisfying, and the credits included a present day update of the brothers playing themselves in a good way.
**** review- spend the $$$$$-worth it.