(1962) – The end of “Mountain” Rivera’s boxing career forces
him into facing the reality of his life. A caring unemployment clerk,
and his devoted cut-man battle for the soul of the boxer with his
selfish promoter.
Directed by Ralph Nelson
Starring: Anthony Quinn, Mickey Rooney, Jackie Gleason, Julie
Harris
Why I Liked It: Brilliant cast delivers great
performances of a wonderful script.
This is one of those
“just don’t screw it up” movies. Rod Serling wrote the story as
a television movie in the 1950s. A few years later, they made this
version for the big screen. With the script honed to perfection
and a cast of the highest quality, all Ralph Nelson had to do was not
trip over his own directorial feet. Given that he had directed the
original TV version, his familiarity made that easy.
Boxing
has never been a pleasant industry. It’s a blood sport, combatants
fighting until either time runs out or one of them succumbs. The
history of the sport is filled with crime, dishonesty, and brutality
that didn’t always end in the ring. Once upon a time, Rivera
(Quinn) made it to the #5 ranking among heavyweights. It’s the
highlight of an otherwise unremarkable career. Now, years later, he’s
punch drunk and has little to offer other than bets against him. In
his last fight (against THE CHAMP to be, Mohamed Ali – still Cassius
Clay in 1962. More on that in a second), his manager, Maish
(Gleason), bets that he won’t last four rounds. Mountain goes seven
and Maish is in trouble with his bookie. He calls on every ounce of
deceit to steer Rivera away from a gentler, happier future that the
unemployment clerk (Harris) and the cut-man (Rooney) are trying to
give him.
If you’re a boxing fan with a knowledge of the
history of the ring, keep your eyes open for a variety of retired
boxes from “back in the day”. Besides Clay/Ali, you’ll get
glimpses of greats like Jack Dempsey, Willie Pep, and Rory Calhoun.
Old school wrestling fans get a glimpse of “Haystack” Calhoun.
It’s a nice touch.
The true glory of this movie are the
performances of Quinn, Gleason, Harris and Rooney, in that order.
Mickey doesn’t get a lot to do here, but Army is a likable
character who lacks the spine to stand up for his friend. I grew up
watching Jackie Gleason doing his brand of slapstick comedy and never
thought of him beyond that. By the time I was in college, I
appreciated the depth of characterization great comedians can bring
to serious roles. Maish isn’t a cardboard cutout bad guy. Part of
him feels bad for what he’s doing to Mountain. But not enough to
stop. And Quinn’s boxer is a wounded bull, trying to please
everyone with no idea of how to make that work.
Rating
– ***** Highest Recommendation
Stories Are My Life 
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