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The movie boasts a impressive cast, telling the real-life tale of coach Brendan Ingle, who mentored a cheeky Yorkshire teenager from Yemeni migrant parents. Dubbed “Prince” Naseem Hamed, the youngster was taught to confront racist bullies and transformed into a celebrity titleholder in the late 90s. Ingle cultivated his showboating confidence and powerful punches, but after becoming rich, Hamed betrayed his coach, cutting him out and turning him into a blend of John Falstaff and Broadway Danny Rose.

Performers and Roles

Brosnan plays the trainer; El-Masry embodies the part of Hamed, and Toby Stephens appears as the bullish London promoter Frank Warren, who recognized the goldmine that Ingle had uncovered.

Film’s Shortcomings

However, the movie frankly misses the fighter’s fancy footwork: the fight scenes run smoothly, but the all-important drama in between is consistently flat and monotonous. There is no nuance or light and shade in the depiction of Hamed himself, and the actor, an otherwise outstanding performer, isn’t given the chance to show any depth or much of what might make his character truly engaging – although he’s obviously been working out and appears convincing in the ring.

Problems with Script and Sound

The story is repeatedly burdened by utilitarian, explanatory dialogue that tell you precisely what is happening and what we are meant to feel (“Your journey began your boxing journey at age seven …”). This is the kind of script that digital producers call “second-screen”, ensuring you know what’s unfolding while you’re watching the film but also checking your device. And, the score is overbearing, at times almost deafening, particularly in the scene where the boxer gets overexcited visiting the promoter in his luxurious home.

Acting and Pivotal Scenes

Although El-Masry and Brosnan do their very utmost, their dynamic doesn’t quite comes to life, and the major fight scenes are often disappointingly truncated. The most important scene is surely when, provoked past his limit in the gym one day by Hamed as a misguided “elder”, the trainer in fact proposes to get in the ring and box him. Everyone in the room is stunned and uneasy. How exactly is this extremely unwise confrontation going to unfold? What will be the outcome? Certainly the Prince is going to kill him? Or will he sentimentally hold back? It’s not clear.

Highlights and Humor

That’s not to say that there aren’t some good moments. Brosnan elicits humor when Ingle tells a reporter what he’s instructing the kids from his neighborhood: to oppose prejudice and when you encounter a paedophile, “Punch him in the groin”. Amusing too when Hamed fidgets at the silly stunts the coach makes him do in the beginning: acting like the “beast from the East”.

Storyline and Final Thoughts

As for the rift, the film shows this as being worsened by a revealing publication that the trainer is allegedly authored (a story element evidently modified from another source), and there is an interestingly conceived last discussion – however the heartfelt homage that the boxer is supposed to have paid to his mentor after his death is only mentioned in the closing credits, and not shown on film. Some engaging content in this film, but the blows fail to connect.

The film screened at the festival and is available in British and Irish cinemas from January 9.