the protagonist happens to be played by an actor who looks more like a fashion model than tough street fighter
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12/17/09
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Fighting (2009)
41
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:118
Fresh:48
Rotten:70
Average Rating:5/10
Consensus: Though Fighting has a likable lead performer, and the fight scenes are impressive, the paper-thin plot ultimately unravels.
Theatrical Release:Apr 24, 2009 Wide
Box Office: $23,036,320
Synopsis: In director Dito Montiel’s 2009 drama, FIGHTING, Channing Tatum (G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA) portrays Shawn, a young man from the South trying to make a living on the streets of New York City.... [More]
Starring: Channing Tatum, Terrence Howard, Zulay Henao, Brian White
Director: Dito Montiel
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Reviews for Fighting
Fighting consistently feels like a patchwork of better movies without their excitement or rooting interest in character.
09/23/09
There’s something interesting in this film and that’s the reality it brings to its subject matter. Scenes seem real. And that’s a lot to do with the performances. They’re all terrific. But there’s the reality of New York too, there’s grit here.
08/26/09
Despite the formulaic script and cringe worthy moments, the performances from the leads and creation of the subculture are well executed by director Montiel.
08/24/09
The only thing you'll be 'fighting' is your lagging attention span.
08/23/09
Montiel and his collaborators can pat themselves on the back for elevating empty material just a bit, but this is disposable cinema, designed to hit and run after an opening weekend. [Blu-ray]
08/22/09
Entertaining and engaging, Fighting has action, romance and a buddy element in a tight, professional package
08/20/09
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08/19/09
Fighting is a testosterone-driven movie full of blood, beautiful women, big muscles and enough plot to be a good movie.
06/10/09
All of this, however, is plainly just a veneer on a solidly generic punch-up movie, and it thus becomes a drag. A more cartoonish approach would probably have been more fun.
05/17/09
While everything is highly predictable, the film is well designed and bone-crushingly violent fights are ably staged in Brooklyn.
05/17/09
Quite how that will go down with his testosterone-fuelled, spotty audience, I have no idea.
05/17/09
The problem is that, even with some very strong acting, we're never quite convinced to believe either the relationships or situations.
05/16/09
The tell-it-as-it-is title hardly indicates anything out of the ordinary, but this bare-knuckle boxing flick is put together with more love than you’d expect.
05/15/09
Like a poor man's Fight Club, Fighting is hardly a heavyweight. But with an enjoyable performance from Terrence Howard, the film is no disaster.
05/15/09
There are no surprises here – this is a story that has been told before, many times. But Tatum gives us a glimpse of the charisma that could make him a star.
05/15/09
You couldn't call Fighting great - at its core it is simply too cruddy - but Montiel has managed to inject it with the smell and feel of the streets that he clearly once knew well.
05/15/09
Montiel’s film lands on its feet with a gripping, will-he-or-won’t-he third act – it’s worth the wait.
05/15/09
The film is lifted slightly by the performances of Howard and Tatum, even though the latter’s mumbling delivery is more Stallone than De Niro. But even Rocky’s narrative had a redemptive arc.
05/15/09
Fighting has nothing to say about men willing to pummel each other senseless. Montiel's second feature is a facile, unchallenging watch, floating like a butterfly but stinging a bit like one, too.
05/15/09
Latest News for Fighting
April 23, 2009:
Critics Consensus: Fighting Is Down For The Count
This week at the movies, weve got bare-knuckle bouts (Fighting, starring Channing Tatum and Terrence Howard), the wonders of nature (Earth, narrated by James Earl Jones), a... More...
April 23, 2009:
Five Favorite Films with Terrence Howard
The Oscar-nominated actor Terrence Howard has amassed an impressive resume since making his Hollywood breakthrough in the 1995 drama Mr. Holland's Opus (he also starred in that... More...
April 23, 2009:
Box Office Guru Preview: Don't You Dare Mess with Beyoncé's Man
The environment needs saving so Hollywood is doing its part to go green by opening recycled versions of Fatal Attraction and Fight Club in hopes of attracting young adults. In a... More...
January 18, 2009:
Trailer & Poster review 
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