Product Description

James J. Braddock was born in a small flat on West 48th Street in New York City on June 7th, 1906. Born in Hell's Kitchen to an Irish immigrant family in 1903, destined to raise a family during the depression, life was not going to be easy for Jim Braddock. His struggles and torments honed him into a fighter, one who would go on to be the Heavyweight Champion of the World, shocking fans and critics alike. "Cinderella Man: The Real Jim Braddock Story" explores the roller coaster rise and fall and rise again of Jim's life. He fought hard to earn his recognition as a fighter, and then had it all taken away when he, and the rest of the country fell into hard times during the Great Depression. More than a great tale of boxing, this is an underdog tale of Jim's tireless drive to succeed. "Cinderella Man: The Real Jim Braddock Story" recounts how Jim worked back-to-back double shifts to feed his family, and still went on to fight when the rare opportunity would come along, during the turbulent twenties. His inner fortitude became a ray of hope for the rest of the nation. Included are recounts and opinions from some of the most renowned boxing historians and Jim Braddock experts, like Burt Sugar, expert and author who has appeared in Boxing Insider, David Margolick, contributing writer at Vanity Fair and Braddock biographer, and Sal Rappa, contributor to Cyber Boxing Zone and world famous expert. The documentary explores the historically significant fights against Louis Schmelling, Art Lasky, and of course the battle against Max Baer that gave Jim the World Heavyweight Championship title, and drove Max to retire from the sport. Jim not only became an icon of boxing, but a symbol of the Depression Era and a living tribute to the American spirit. Jim Braddock had an indomitable drive to be the best, against insurmountable odds.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #81777 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-10-25
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 60 minutes

Customer Reviews

Inspirational documentary
This dvd gives an overview of Braddock's rise, fall, and re-rise (culminating in the heavyweight title fight with Max Baer). It is short in length and therefore gives just a basic overview of Braddock's life and career. The people interviewed (including boxing referrees, boxing historians, and authors) give unabashed praise for the man who fought a heavyweight championship contender on 2 days notice without training for it, the man who broke his own hand so the doctor could re-set it properly, and the man that inspired a nation when he paid back every dime of the welfare money he had received. The documentary also covers less well-known facts about Braddock's life. It reveals that Braddock received cracked ribs during his training for the Baer fight, a fact that Braddock successfully hid from the press. It also highlights the close personal relationship between Braddock and his manager, Joe Gould. The dvd extras include interview segments with Bert Sugar, Michael DeLisa, and David Margolick. I would recommend this dvd to anyone but especially fans of the movie Cinderella Man. This documentary dispels a few errors from that film - particularly, Braddock's being decommissioned, which did not actually happen. It also gives an explanation for the unfair villanizing of Max Baer in the movie.

Good Interview with Referee
The interview with my father former fighter and Boxing Referee Ron Lipton was really insightful. Many people who read him all the time on Cyberboxingzone loved this DVD along with the other historians like Mike DeLisa and Sal Rappa.

My Father refereed Holyfield, Roberto Duran, Morrison, Pernell Whitiker, Roy Jones Jr and Oscar DeLahoya. He really knows his boxing history and made it very interesting. HIs real appreciation for Braddock, Joe Louis and Max Baer was a hi light for me.

Saved my life!
Out of work and losing everything, I was ready to throw in the towel. Afer watching Russsel Crowe as Jame J Braddock, I could only dream to have such courage, (being Irish myself), I knew I could not cheat myself out of life, and continued to fight on to a better life. Crowe should have won the Oscar for this performance. He was truly cheated. I was sorry to hear him say he would not do another boxing movie. Crowe was truly inspirational as Jimmy Braddock.