Fighters

Author(s): Juan
Location: Mexico

“Fighters"

Directed by: Jim Sheridan
Written by: Jim Sheridan and Ron Nyswaner
Music by: Rachel Portman
Cinematography by: Edward Lachman

Principal Cast:

Ralph Fiennes- Kyle Norman
Natalie Portman- Joanne Gunter
William Dafoe-Nathan Dawnay
Julianne Moore- Beatrice Norman
Ellen Burstyn-Ava Tabor
James Franco-Jason Gunter
Diane Kruger- Helen Safford
Joseph Cross- David Norman

Tagline: “The hardest battles are always won with love"

Synopsis: Kyle is an American diplomat whose life is relatively perfect; he has an interesting job, knows lots of people and maintains a stable relationship with a smart beautiful woman, Helen. He is a divorced man who tries to forget a troubled marriage with an alcoholic woman, Beatrice, who tries really hard to be a role model to their confused teenage son, David. Kyle’s life changes dramatically when his son committed suicide because he had acquired the HIV after a night of wild party. Beatrice falls into a deep depression and drinks alcohol in an excessive way; on the other hand, Kyle realizes how empty his life is and decides to dedicate his life to help AIDS victims. That’s reason why he moves to New York and breaks up with Helen, who doesn’t believe he will make the change.

Meanwhile, in a Michigan poor suburb, a young nurse, Joanne, mother of a lovely boy, discovers that she has been infected because of her husband’s promiscuity. When her boss realizes she is infected she fires her, and she gets totally submerged in misery. Desperate for this situation she moves to New York to live with her supporting aunt, Ava. She is forced to hide her secret in order to get a good job. One day, while working as a waitress in a luxury restaurant she meets Kyle, who feels attracted by her hopeful but sad appearance that remind him all those people he could have helped but that before his son’s death were indifferent to him.

Kyle gets to know Joanne and discovers her sad case. That became his inspiration to start an AIDS fighting campaign. Kyle tries to convince important politicians to help him but influential and insensitive Senator Nathan D. becomes his biggest obstacle. The Senator thinks military actions in Middle-East are more necessary. Joanne and his son’s living fight will motivate Kyle to carry on with his. Joanne faces poverty and social discrimination and her husband harassed constantly. Kyle commits to support her, which conduces him to fall in love with her; a totally unrealistic feeling because she gets closest to death every day.

What the press would say:

\One of the most devastating problems in our planet is the AIDS epidemic, that has killed millions of people and that needs to be solved immediately to avoid more deaths. Jim Sheridan treats this theme in one of the most human pictures of all time, a very sensitive and realistic story about the fight of two characters to survive in a chaotic world, trusting that good will and perseverance can make the change. The team directed by Sheridan is at the same time unusual and great, every actor giving a very touching representation of human feelings, and everybody succeeding in capturing their characters that are rich and complex in their own way.

Joseph Cross plays a powerful but small role in which he plays a young man that nobody expects to acquire the HIV being a teenager, especially if your life is difficult, your mother is alcoholic and you hate your father, Joseph Cross’s performance achieves in transmitting sadness and a feeling of depth loneliness. Diane Kruger is perfect and delightful as Kyle’s intellectual girlfriend; the magic of her performance is that she is able to be nice but selfish at the same time. She is insecure, confused and frightened, and her character doesn’t want to face reality because she knows it is hard.

James Franco surprises with his performance. He is amazing, turning into a disgusting person, someone who does not care about his family and that lives submerged in a total immaturity. He makes us hate him, he has made the best performance of his career. Ellen Burstyn plays one of the tenderest roles of the story, and she plays it majestically, she is great in everything, her maternal instinct is present in every moment. Her “Ava” is always there to help her niece and her son, she is another “fighter”, a woman who tries to bring hope and love to the life of someone that really needs them; her performance set her in the spotlight, a respected actress playing a very sensitive character is pure Oscar-bait.

Two big performances of this film are Julianne Moore’s and William Dafoes, who almost steal the show (which is impossible because of the incredible leading performances). Julianne’s role is totally different to everything she has done before, her performance is entirely heartbreaking, she suffers a lot and she only want something that gives her strength, the way she portray this feeling is remarkable, she becomes a sad vulnerable woman, this performance is one of the best of the season, she truly deserves an Oscar nomination in the supporting category. William Dafoe is also astonishing, he offers a very special performance in this film. His insensitivity and excessive pride shock the audience, it is unbelievable there can be someone like “Nathan Dawnay”, He adds a cruel bitterness to the story in a marvelous way, he captured completely the politic essence of his character it is impossible to imagine this film without his acting quality, he is another big Oscar contender that emerges from this film.

Natalie Portman is wonderful the first moment she appears on screen, her character is the most complex of the film, her performance is breathtaking, she show how much she has matured, she has become a big actress. Natalie Portman, the actress, is gone, but instead we have an authentic woman, a woman that tries to get ahead knowing she is destined to death; her character represent the spirit of perseverance and hope, the way she portray it is magnificent, words are not enough to describe how brilliant she is in this film. Natalie Portman will be one of these year’s Best Actress nominees, and why not, an Oscar-winner.

Ralph Fiennes plays the hero of the film, his “Kyle” is very interesting, he lives submerged in a sea of incontrollable emotions, he wants to help people but the are many obstacles in his way and he looks so weak and hopeless, but always trying to overcome and share his will. This performance is one the best Ralph has made in his career, he let us feel his confusion ad despair, he is a “fighter” that needs help to carry on. There is no doubt that Ralph Fiennes will be recognized by the A.M.P.A.S., performances like his are memorable.

“Fighters” is master-piece, Jim Sheridan delivers his best work, the screenplay is extraordinary and his directing capacity is reflected in every scene. When someone gets to understand human tragedy and tries to transmit a message of hope, the result is marvelous. “Fighters” is a movie about valuating life, about fighting for every moment and discover ourselves. It is one the best films of the season and a real frontrunner for the next Academy Awards.

AWARDS FOR CONSIDERATION:

Best Picture
Best Director: Jim Sheridan
Actor in a leading role: Ralph Fiennes
Actress in a leading role: Natalie Portman
Best supporting actor: William Dafoe
Best supporting actress: Julianne Moore
Best supporting actress: Ellen Burstyn
Original Screenplay
Original Score
Original Song ( A song by U2)
Cinematography
Best Editing