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The post Home Video Hovel: Girlfight, by Rudie Obias appeared first on Battleship Pretension.
Movies during the late ‘90s and early 2000s were truly special. While a small budget didn’t hinder big ideas, there was also a working marketplace for independent cinema. With showcases like the Sundance Film Festival, movies —such as You Can Count on Me, Twin Falls Idaho, Chuck & Buck, and SLC Punk — could thrive and gain much needed attention from general audiences. One of the best movies to come out of this era of movies was Girlfight, the debut for both filmmaker Karyn Kusama (Jennifer’s Body, Destroyer) and actress Michelle Rodriguez (The Fast and the Furious, Avatar).
Girlfight follows Diana Guzman, played by Rodriguez, a very angry high school student from Red Hook, Brooklyn in New York City. She’s volatile and full of rage because of her family and school life, but can’t seem to channel it into anything, but pick fights at school. However, after picking her brother up from a gym where he’s training to fight, she decides that she wants to be a boxer herself. Although an old trainer named Hector, played by Jamie Tirelli (Carlito’s Way, The Brave One) is reluctant to teach her how to box, he quickly comes around when he realizes that she’s the real deal.
During her training, Diana spars with other students, some of whom believe she doesn’t belong, but Adrian, played by Santiago Douglas (Punto 45, The Southside) a young, would-be-pro boxer, also sees something special inside of her.
Girlfight is an exceptional film. Rodriguez has a charisma that’s suited for the big screen, while Kusama’s smart screenplay and keen eye behind the camera is well-considered and effortless. It completely nails the underdog story of a female boxer in a man’s ring, as it gives the Diana character agency of her life and future — especially as a young women from the projects in Red Hook.
There’s a certain vulnerability and raw emotion to Girlfight that aren’t masked with boxing, but rather enhanced. As a member of the audience, we are with Diana from the very beginning of the film, as we’re along for the ride with the ups and downs that come with being a young adult.
As for the home video release from the Criterion Collection, the presentation has a sharp and rich picture quality with a new 4K restoration that was approved and supervised by Kusama and Girlfight’s cinematographer Patrick Cady (Jump Tomorrow, Sunshine State). It’s nice to see that the film’s film grain was not removed for a modern look and feel. This movie was made in 1999, so it should feel like it’s in 1999. The sound quality is top notch with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio.
The bonus features are informative with new interviews with Kusama looking back at the film nearly 25 years after its release, as well as the film’s editor Plummy Tucker (Æon Flux, Destroyer) and co-composer Theodore Shapiro (2013’s The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Tropic Thunder).
The look back interviews provide insight on low budget filmmaking back in the late ‘90s with the creative flourishes that occurred to get around limited resources. However, the audio commentary with Kusama was from the 2001 DVD release of Girlfight, which is disappointing. The interviews with Kusama in 2024 were so insightful that it would’ve been even better to get a sense of what she thinks of her work, as a whole, more than two decades later.
The Criterion Collection edition of Girlfight is definitely worth your time. It captures a movement and spirit of American filmmaking from the late ‘90s and early 2000s that just doesn’t exist today. It’s a movie that takes chances with its subject matter and cast of characters (mostly consisting of people of color), all while being very entertaining and sharp.
The post Home Video Hovel: Girlfight, by Rudie Obias first appeared on Battleship Pretension.
The post Home Video Hovel: Girlfight, by Rudie Obias appeared first on Battleship Pretension.
