Gladiator (1992)
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Two teenagers find themselves entangled in the dangerous world of illegal underground boxing to settle debts and escape their circumstances.
The story
Tommy Riley, a teenager struggling to fit in at school and dealing with his father's gambling debts, is recruited by boxing promoter Pappy Jack to fight in an illegal underground boxing operation. While fighting to pay off his father's debts, Tommy befriends another young fighter, Abraham "Lincoln" Haines, who is fighting to escape the ghetto. As they navigate the exploitation of the underground circuit, Tommy must contend with dirty fighters and crooked referees while trying to protect his friends and secure his own freedom.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Tommy Riley's father, John, has accumulated significant gambling debts, forcing Tommy to take a job at a local diner and eventually enter an illegal underground boxing ring managed by Pappy Jack. Tommy finds success and befriends fellow fighters Romano Essadro and Abraham "Lincoln" Haines. However, the sport is brutal; Tommy discovers that some fighters, like Shortcut, use illegal tactics. After Shortcut blinds Romano during a match, Tommy learns to fight dirty to defeat him. Meanwhile, Lincoln suffers potential brain damage and is told to stop fighting, but promoter Jimmy Horn forces a match between him and Tommy. Tommy refuses to hurt Lincoln, leading Horn to punch Lincoln out of the ring. Enraged, Tommy challenges Horn to a bare-knuckle match to wipe his father's debt. Despite Horn's experience and attempts to humiliate him, Tommy uses various tactics, including faking a broken hand, to catch Horn off guard and win the fight, finally freeing himself from Horn's contract.
- First release year
- 1992
- Runtime (minutes)
- 101
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Rowdy Herrington
- Writers
- Lyle Kessler · screenplay; Robert Mark Kamen · screenplay; Djordje Milicevic · story; Robert Mark Kamen · story
- Cast and characters
- James Marshall · Tommy "The Bridgeport Bomber" Riley; Cuba Gooding Jr. · Abraham "Lincoln" Haines; Brian Dennehy · Jimmy Horn; Robert Loggia · Pappy Jack; Ossie Davis · Noah; Cara Buono · Dawn; Jon Seda · Romano Essadro; Thomas Charles Simmons · Leo
- Genres
- sports drama; drama; teen drama; sports
- Themes
- debt; friendship; survival; exploitation
- Tone and mood
- dramatic; gritty
- Premise and plot tags
- boxing; underground fighting; teen drama; sports
- Reception
- The film received an indifferent reception from critics.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 49 · scale: 100 · review count: 19
- Production trivia
- Jon Seda made his debut on the film, auditioning for the original director John G. Avildsen.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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