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This film boasts a talented cast, depicting the real-life story of Irish boxing trainer Ingle, who mentored a brash Sheffield youth from Middle Eastern migrant parents. Dubbed “Prince” Naseem Hamed, the youngster was coached to confront prejudice and molded into a media-friendly titleholder in the 1990s. The trainer nurtured his showboating confidence and powerful punches, but after becoming rich, Hamed betrayed his coach, cutting him out and turning him into a blend of Falstaff and Broadway Danny Rose.

Cast and Characters

Brosnan plays Ingle; Amir El-Masry takes on the role of Hamed, and Toby Stephens appears as the assertive London promoter Warren, who recognized the goldmine that Ingle had uncovered.

Film’s Shortcomings

Yet, the movie frankly misses the fighter’s agility: the boxing sequences flow well, but the all-important drama between them is consistently flat and one-note. There is no nuance or contrast in the portrayal of Hamed himself, and El-Masry, an otherwise excellent talent, isn’t given the opportunity to display any depth or much of what might make his role really interesting – even though he’s clearly been working out and appears convincing in the boxing arena.

Dialogue and Music Issues

The drama is repeatedly lumbered with utilitarian, explanatory dialogue that tell you precisely what is going on and what we are meant to feel (“You started your boxing journey at age seven …”). This is the kind of dialogue that digital executives call “second-screen”, ensuring you understand what’s going on while you’re watching the movie but also checking your device. And, the background music is overpowering, at times almost overwhelming, especially in the scene where Hamed gets too excited visiting the promoter in his palatial home.

Acting and Pivotal Scenes

Although El-Masry and Brosnan do their very utmost, their relationship never really ignites, and the major boxing moments are often anticlimactically cut short. The most important moment is surely when, goaded past his limit in the gym one day by Hamed as a delusional “old man”, the trainer actually offers to step into the ring and box him. Everyone in the room is shocked and uneasy. How exactly is this extremely unwise standoff going to play out? What will be the outcome? Certainly the Prince is going to defeat him? Alternatively will he emotionally hold back? The resolution remains ambiguous.

Highlights and Humor

This isn’t to imply that there are no some nice jabs. Brosnan gets laughs when his character informs a reporter what he’s teaching the kids from his local community: to reject prejudice and when you encounter a offender, “Punch him in the bollocks”. It’s funny too when the boxer squirms at the ridiculous antics the coach makes him do in the beginning: acting like the “monster from the Middle East”.

Storyline and Final Thoughts

As for the falling out, the movie depicts this as being exacerbated by a revealing publication that Ingle is allegedly written (a plot point evidently adapted from another source), and there is an interestingly imagined last discussion – however the emotional tribute that the boxer is supposed to have given to his mentor after his death is only referenced in the closing credits, and not dramatised on film. Some engaging content in this film, but the blows fail to connect.

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