The Giant Film Analysis: Naseem Hamed Movie Featuring Brosnan Lacks the Impact

This film boasts a talented ensemble, depicting the real-life tale of coach Ingle, who guided a cheeky Sheffield youth from Yemeni immigrant parents. Dubbed “Prince” Naseem Hamed, the youngster was taught to confront racist bullies and molded into a celebrity titleholder in the 1990s. Ingle cultivated his showboating arrogance and lethal fists, but after becoming rich, Hamed turned against his mentor, excluding him and making him a mix of John Falstaff and Broadway Danny Rose.

Cast and Characters

Pierce Brosnan plays the trainer; El-Masry takes on the role of the prince, and Stephens appears as the bullish promoter Frank Warren, who saw the potential that Ingle had discovered.

Where the Movie Falls Short

Yet, the film honestly misses the fighter’s fancy footwork: the boxing sequences flow well, but the all-important drama between them is repeatedly dull and monotonous. There is no subtlety or contrast in the portrayal of Hamed himself, and El-Masry, an otherwise outstanding performer, doesn’t get the opportunity to display any subtlety or much of what might make his character really interesting – even though he’s clearly been training and appears convincing in the ring.

Problems with Script and Sound

The story is often burdened by functional, expositional dialogue that tell you precisely what is going on and what we are meant to feel (“Your journey began your boxing journey at age seven …”). This is the sort of script that digital producers call “double-screen”, making sure you know what’s going on while you’re watching the film but also checking your phone. And, the background music is overpowering, at times almost overwhelming, particularly in the scene where the boxer gets too excited calling on Warren in his luxurious home.

Acting and Pivotal Scenes

While the leads do their considerable best, their dynamic never really comes to life, and the big set-piece fight scenes are often disappointingly truncated. The most important scene is certainly when, provoked past his limit in the gym one day by the boxer as a delusional “old man”, Ingle in fact proposes to get in the ring and box him. Everyone in the gym is stunned and uneasy. In what way is this insanely risky confrontation going to unfold? What will be the ending? Surely the Prince is going to kill him? Or will he emotionally pull his punches? It’s not clear.

Bright Spots and Comedy

That’s not to say that there are no some nice jabs. The actor elicits humor when Ingle tells a reporter what he’s teaching the youths from his neighborhood: to reject prejudice and when you meet a offender, “Hit them in the groin”. It’s funny too when the boxer fidgets at the silly stunts the coach makes him do in the beginning: posing as the “monster from the East”.

Plot and Conclusion

Regarding the rift, the movie depicts this as being worsened by a tell-all book that Ingle is allegedly written (a story element evidently modified from another source), and there is an interestingly conceived final conversation – although the heartfelt homage that the boxer is supposed to have given to his mentor after his death is only mentioned in the closing credits, and not shown on film. Some engaging content in this film, but the punches fail to connect.

The film was shown at the festival and is in British and Irish cinemas from 9 January.