In Fight Club boxing means pain, which is the key to liberation. Only through the willing embrace of suffering can one overcome fear, exercise power, and resurrect one’s masculinity (Grindon 185). By exerting physical power, the characters are able to find ectasy. The characters are able to prove themselves through the physical task, and they are rewarded for their pain. It can be concluded that most boxers fight as a way to achieve a sense of greatness. Most boxers have the same idealogy about life and how it should be spent. Although Fight Club and it's main character are unconventional, he still has certain beliefs that fighting will provide an escape and create a sense of meaning in his life.
is This follows along with the theory that the boxer is trying to escape something by fighting. When Tyler alludes to the idea of letting pain go, he is trying to tell the narrator that he must commit to pain in order to feel something. When boxers step into the ring, they know what pain awaits them, and yet they continue to fight and sacrifice their bodies in order to achieve enlightenment. When Tyler Durden subjects the narrator to this pain, he is reiterating the sacrifice boxers always make. This scene is important because it is focusing on just how far the narrator will go to escape his emotional problems and achieve power. Fighting is physical, but this implentation device involves the mind and the narrators way of life. It reveals there is more to a boxer than what appears on the surface; a common theme seen in many boxing fims.
At its best, the boxing films present suffering as a means of achieving insight and compassion, rather than endorsing pain as an avenue to power. (Grindon 187) Boxing is seen as violent, but it is something still widely popular, and many movies have been made about the subject, which is why, the genre does not support the pain, but the escape. Fighting offers solutions to the audience, and the boxer is able to reveal his true self in the ring. Another issue commonly noted in the boxing film is masculinity.
... this is exemplified in films like On The Waterfront, Body and Soul, and even films like Creed, where fighting means more than just winning (In the sense that Terry fights against unfair treatment of the mob and Adonos proves himself to be a Creed). It creates a meaning for the boxer, and in Fight Club, the narrator learns that his meaning is to take control of his life and do things that will make him, not others, happy.
On the surface, "Fight Club" is not a conventional boxing movie, but throghout the film, the central characters reveal similarties between boxers and their personalities. In "Fight Club", violence is used as a method of escape. By exerting physical pain, the characters are able to revel in power and express their emotions in an unconventional way. The main thing that connects Fight Club to the boxing genre is the characters and how they react to violence and power. Even though there is no literal boxing ring, the characters are therotically placed within one and are meant to find meaning through their punches.
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Sort of like Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull (1980), the character is a washed-up lowlife. By introducing past success, there is an emotional impact on the audience when they learn that Randy is no longer this wonderous persona. He has become pathetic, in a sense, because he is still trying to reel in the success from the eighties. It goes along with this idea that the "boxer" only has "boxing". All Randy knows is a life of wrestling, and he does not know how to function without it. This is also prevalent in the end of the film, when Randy suffers from a heartattack, but continues to wrestle anyway. This opening scene also relates to a common phrase said in boxing films, "bum".
In the article "I'm Ram, Not Robin" by Daniel Morris, Morris summarizes this shot, "Following Rodney's backside, as the camera had done in scenes when he was about to enter the ring, viewers are made to feel that Rodney is entering an arena, not the deli counter of an Acme supermarket in New Jersey". This is an important observation because it suggests to the audience that even though the character is trying to change his life, the sport will never leave him. Once again, all Randy knows is wrestling. Although he loves the sport, he is trying to better himself by beginning a new life, but emotional pain can come along with that.
Leger Grindon continues on with referencing that, "Witnessing suffering is central to spectatorship in the boxing genre. 'Boxing is about being hit rather more than it is about hitting,' Oates explains, 'just as it is about feeling pain, if not devastating psychological paralysis, more than it is about winning' (Oates 1987, 25)". This is important because it digs deeper when analyzing a boxers true self. It is a question of why the main character endures so much pain, and it can be infered that the beatings are less painful than life outside of the ring. Randy tries to better himself, and when he forgets to go to dinner with his daughter, he suffers. He realizes he will never be the man he wants, and he goes back to wrestling. It is a sad revelation because he truly will always be a depressed man.
In his book, Knockout!, Leger Grindon states that a boxing film has ten key elements. "Move 1, The Discovery: Move 2, The Crisis: Move 3, The Promise: Move 4, The Rise: Move 5, The Deal: Move 6, Debauchery: Move 7, Big Fight 1: Move 8, The Dive: Move 9, Big Fight 2: Move 10, Resolution/Epilogue" He also adds "a work may portray only a part of this narrative pattern while still operating within the conventions of the genre". To put it into perspective, I see The Discovery happens when we are introduced to his love for the sport. The Crisis, of course, is the heart attack. He promises to stop wrestling, and rises as a deli worker. He also tries to rise when he reaches out to his daughter. Debauchery happens when he gets drunk, and forgets about dinner with his daughter. This creates emotional distress, and ultimatley we move into the Big Fight 1 phase. For this film, there is truly only one big fight, and it is in the final moments of the film. The films ends on "The Dive", and we see the character give everything to his beloved sport. A resolution is purposefully neglected in this film because the director wants to give a lasting image of the wrestler at his best. He has nothing left but the applause and appraisal of his suppoters. Overall, this film follows the structure of a boxing film because the main character is engulfed in his passions. Instead of focusing on the people around him, Randy continues to live a life of wrestling because it is all he knows. Viewing this film scene by scene, the audience can note similarities of this film to Hollywood classic boxing films. The biggest lasting impact of this movie is the revelation that the main character can not walk away from his true love, wrestling.
By opening the movie up with the managers, the director is ultimately letting the audience know that the movie will be veering off course from a typical boxing film format (in which the plot focuses on the boxer). In a post titled Hook them Early, The Importance of An Opening Scene by writer Zac Hogle, Hogle says "One of the most important moments in film is the opening scene. Ending scenes, plot twists and other elements all leave the lasting impression, but you only get one opportunity to hook an audience." This movie offers something different to it's audience by highlighting the men behind the boxer, and that's where the director successful "hooks" his audience.
I think this quote is important because it shows just how different this movie is. The gangsters are back at it again and they leave the audience shocked when it is revealed what Toro truly was working for. Something I like about the way this scene is set up is the fact that there is an extreme amount of build up to the big money reveal. The audience is on their toes, and once it is revealed, the audience reacts with an emotion. It is an effective delivery method because it helps evoke an audience response. The viewer is expecting the boxer to make more money than the journalist, and yet he doesn't. While researching facts about this film, I came across something called The Ali Act. According to Wikipedia, "The Act was enacted in response to widespread abuse of boxers by means of exploitation, rigged rankings, and rigged matches." If it weren't for films like these, I would have never known about the certain abuse these performers undergo. I think this is what is most effective about The Harder They Fall. This film truly introduces a relationship the audience probably hasn't seen before, and it helps raise awareness for the issue. Overall, The Harder They Fall draws attention to the corrupt world of boxing that a normal audience wouldn't normally see. Instead of focusing on the boxer, Robson zeros in on the person who sees both sides of the boxing world, and is ultimately able to provide his audience a new view of the sport. Through the use of the characters and setting, The Harder They Fall truly captivates the aggressive managers and tells a story of the unfairness the world of boxing has to offer.
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Author(savannah hink) |