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This film boasts a talented ensemble, depicting the true story of Irish boxing trainer Ingle, who mentored a cheeky Sheffield teenager from Yemeni immigrant family. Known as “Prince” Naseem Hamed, the youngster was taught to confront prejudice and transformed into a celebrity world champion in the 1990s. Ingle nurtured his flamboyant confidence and lethal fists, but after achieving wealth, the boxer betrayed his coach, excluding him and making him a blend of John Falstaff and Broadway Danny Rose.

Cast and Characters

Brosnan plays Ingle; Amir El-Masry embodies the role of Hamed, and Stephens is the bullish London promoter Warren, who recognized the potential that the coach had discovered.

Where the Movie Falls Short

Yet, the film honestly misses the Prince’s agility: the fight scenes flow well, but the all-important drama between them is repeatedly flat and one-note. It lacks subtlety or contrast in the portrayal of the protagonist himself, and El-Masry, an otherwise excellent talent, doesn’t get the chance to show any subtlety or much of what might make his character really interesting – even though he’s clearly been working out and looks very plausible in the boxing arena.

Dialogue and Music Issues

The drama is often lumbered with functional, explanatory lines that tell you precisely what is going on and what we are meant to feel (“Your journey began your boxing journey at seven years old …”). It is the sort of script that digital producers call “double-screen”, making sure you know what’s going on while you’re watching the film but also checking your device. And, the background music is overpowering, at times almost deafening, particularly in the moment where the boxer gets overexcited calling on Warren in his luxurious home.

Acting and Pivotal Scenes

Although the leads do their very utmost, their dynamic doesn’t quite comes to life, and the major boxing moments are frequently anticlimactically cut short. The most important scene is certainly when, goaded beyond endurance in the training facility one day by Hamed as a delusional “elder”, the trainer in fact proposes to step into the ring and box him. Everyone in the room is shocked and uncomfortable. In what way is this insanely risky standoff going to unfold? What will be the outcome? Certainly the champion is going to defeat him? Or will he emotionally pull his punches? It’s not clear.

Bright Spots and Comedy

That’s not to say that there are no some good moments. The actor gets laughs when his character tells a reporter what he’s teaching the youths from his local community: to reject prejudice and when you meet a paedophile, “Hit them in the bollocks”. Amusing too when the boxer squirms at the ridiculous stunts Ingle makes him do in the beginning: posing as the “beast from the East”.

Storyline and Final Thoughts

Regarding the falling out, the film shows this as being worsened by a revealing book that the trainer is supposed to have written (a plot point evidently modified from another source), and there is an interestingly imagined final conversation – however the emotional tribute that Hamed is supposed to have given to his mentor after his passing is merely mentioned in the end titles, and not shown on screen. Some interesting material in this film, but the punches don’t land.

Giant was shown at the festival and is available in British and Irish theaters from January 9.