Gabriel review – plucky boxing story pulls its punches
13 November 2019 03:00
The tale of a desperate young fighter in Lisbon features a soulful performance but is dogged by boxing movie clichesThere are echoes of Ken Loach in this Portuguese drama about a young immigrant boxer, a decent kid with no job prospects and few opportunities. Igor Regalla gives the film a heart with his disarmingly warm central performance as a young fighter from Cape Verde, a former colony. But the film’s claim to uncompromising realism is let down by a few cliched scenes that feel recycled from earlier boxing movies about plucky kids fighting for a place in the world.The film opens with Gabriel (Regalla) in a boxing ring, dazedly absorbing ferocious blows. Why isn’t he defending himself? Flash back a few months, and he’s arriving in Lisbon to live with his aunt Alice (Mina Andala) and her son in a rundown estate of high-rise flats. Gabriel is drawn to the local boxing gym where his dad, who came to Portugal years ago, used to train, but he’s nowhere to be found. Continue readingread full article
