First of all, I love the underlining themes of this film. Yes, this film is a boxing film but it's one of those films where you have to watch it to get the deeper meaning behind it. One of the meanings is that you have to lose once in a while to get better. Billy has to change from when we first see him at the beginning of the film to the last time. Which is another reason why I love this film is the character development in this film. Billy doesn't stay the same from beginning to end. No, he has to change in order to get his life back together and you see that not just instantly but over the period of the film. I also really liked the pacing in this film. None of the scenes felt rushed or slowed down at any point. They all felt like the speed it should be going at for a movie like this. But I can't say the same about the transitions in this film. Some of them were awkward and took away from the emotion in that scene. The acting in this film was spectacular as well. Which ties in well with the emotion because all the actors and actresses easily showed the proper emotion that was supposed to be seen at that moment. When a character was upset or angry you could easily see it in their facial expression and body language. But obviously I knew Jake Gyllenhaal was going to be good in this film but somebody who shocked me was Oona Laurence, who plays Leila Hope. She acted way beyond somebody her age and she could easily steal the scene from any of the adults and I hope she has a great career in the future. In the end, this film isn't just a boxing film but a movie about how you have to lose once in a while to change and grow as a person.
