Throughout history, there have been many fictional characters or events that are “inspired” by actual events or people, like the fight at the O.K. Corral, Dracula, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, or even the person who survived an actual bear attack portrayed in the movie “The Revenant”. A good number of these people go unnoticed by history, but the good news about the world we live in is the fact that these stories can be told through the research of technology.
“Chuck” is the new film directed by Philippe Falardeau (The Good Lie, Congorama) and stars Liev Schreiber (Spotlight, Salt), Elisabeth Moss (Mad men, Truth), Naomi Watts (King Kong, The Ring), Ron Perlman (Blade II, Hellboy), Jim Gaffigan (17 Again, Super Troopers) Morgan Spector (The Drop, Split), and Pooch Hall (A Dog’s Purpose, Carter High). Based on the life of boxer Chuck Wepner (Schreiber) who received a title shot against Muhammad Ali (Hall) (almost forcing a decision), his story would be loosely told in 1977 with the Academy Award-winning “Rocky”. The film itself follows his life up to and after his big title fight through the rollercoaster of fame, addiction, family life and more.
The film is based in the ‘70s and early ‘80s and is very historically correct on every level. On that front, I was very impressed. It really reminded me a lot of films like the recent “Free Fire”. When it comes to the acting, the leads Perlman, Watts, Moss, and Schreiber do fine but not their best roles ever. The cast did well, but there are no roles that really blew my mind.
The storyline basically tells the story of Chuck’s life, with many of the train wrecks easily telegraphed. In a way, the film is predictable, but it is still interesting. I did not love or hate this film, but it was still good, so I will recommend “Chuck” as a Redbox rental.