At first, it is a fresh, assured, and evocative take on the classic boxing formula. A tired old trainer (Clint Eastwood as Frankie), abandoned by the prospect he hoped to take to the title bout, meets a scrappy but untrained would-be boxer. He initially refuses to train the kid, but is won over, at first by the persistence, then by the heart of the young fighter. There's another connection between them, too. Frankie has no family but a long-estranged daughter. The boxer's father is dead and the remaining family is all greedy, selfish, and lazy. The bond between them helps to ease both of their losses.
One reason the relationship becomes so important to Frankie is that the boxer is a young woman. …
