The best boxing movies ever made

Errol Flynn is among the forgotten movie stars of the golden age of Hollywood, and Gentleman Jim is a wonderful showcase for everything he was capable of. The film is a period piece set at the turn of the century, and follows “Gentleman” Jim Corbett as boxing evolves from a rough and tumble sport to something that is far more professionalized. Gentleman Jim is certainly a bit old-fashioned, but part of its charm is that you basically know what you’re getting, and you can still find yourself pleased with the final result.

The only documentary to make this list, When We Were Kings chronicles the lead-up to the famous Rumble in the Jungle, which saw Muhammad Ali taking on George Foreman. What we see are two fighters with wildly different temperaments and styles who ultimately face off in the heat and humidity of sub-Saharan Africa. The boxing itself is plenty thrilling, but what proves to be even more compelling is Ali himself, who was such a massive presence.

Loosely adapting the true story of the Ward brothers, The Fighter is about family as much or perhaps even more than it’s about boxing. Both men were welterweight boxers from Lowell, Mass., and Dicky once showed a lot of promise in the ring. Ultimately, though, he succumbed to a crack addiction and he now works as a trainer to his brother Micky.

What makes The Fighter great, though, is that its triumphs are all interpersonal. It’s a movie about a family making room for one another, and the performances are terrific across the board.

It is based on the famous career of Primo Carnera, which was one of the most corrupt in the history of sports. A foreign fighter whose fights are fixed without his knowledge, as the mob figures surrounding him take him all the way to the top, but siphon off most of his winnings as he goes.

Our central fighter winds up highly vulnerable, discovering that the world he thought he knew was built on lies. And, because his money was not his own, all of the glory he winds up with doesn’t add up to all that much.

Martin Scorsese’s career cannot be boiled down to a single film, but this may be the pinnacle of his collaboration with Robert De Niro. Raging Bull tells the story of Jake LaMotta, an incredible boxer who was also a functional alcoholic and regularly abused his wife.

The film works because Scorsese doesn’t shy away from any of the more disturbing parts of LaMotta’s life. De Niro’s commitment to the role only makes the film feel more vibrant and lived in, but this isn’t a typical story of sports triumph. Raging Bull is willing to be a whole lot uglier than that.