The Giant Review: Prince Naseem Biopic Featuring Pierce Brosnan Misses the Impact
The movie features a impressive ensemble, depicting the true story of coach Brendan Ingle, who guided a cheeky Sheffield youth from Yemeni immigrant parents. Dubbed “Prince” Naseem Hamed, the fighter was coached to stand up to prejudice and transformed into a celebrity titleholder in the late 90s. The trainer cultivated his flamboyant arrogance and lethal fists, but after achieving wealth, Hamed turned against his mentor, excluding him and turning him into a mix of Falstaff and Broadway Danny Rose.
Cast and Characters
Brosnan plays the trainer; Amir El-Masry takes on the part of Hamed, and Stephens appears as the bullish promoter Frank Warren, who saw the goldmine that the coach 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 consistently dull and monotonous. It lacks nuance or contrast in the depiction of the protagonist himself, and the actor, an otherwise outstanding performer, isn’t given the chance to show any depth or much of what might make his character really interesting – although he’s clearly been working out and appears convincing in the boxing arena.
Dialogue and Music Issues
The story is repeatedly lumbered with functional, explanatory dialogue that tell you exactly what is happening and what we are meant to feel (“You started your career at age seven …”). It is the kind of script that streaming-TV executives call “double-screen”, ensuring you understand what’s unfolding while you’re viewing the film but also checking your phone. Additionally, the background music is overpowering, sometimes almost overwhelming, particularly in the moment where the boxer gets too excited calling on the promoter in his luxurious home.
Performances and Key Moments
While El-Masry and Brosnan do their considerable best, their relationship doesn’t quite comes to life, and the major fight scenes are often disappointingly truncated. The most important scene is surely when, goaded beyond endurance in the training facility one day by Hamed as a delusional “elder”, Ingle actually offers to step into the ring and fight him. All present in the room is stunned and uneasy. How exactly is this extremely unwise confrontation going to unfold? What will be the ending? Surely the Prince is going to kill him? Or will he sentimentally hold back? It’s not clear.
Bright Spots and Comedy
That’s not to say that there are no some good moments. The actor elicits humor when his character informs a reporter what he’s instructing the kids from his local community: to reject bias and when you meet a paedophile, “Hit them in the bollocks”. It’s funny too when the boxer fidgets at the silly antics Ingle makes him do in the early days: acting like the “beast from the East”.
Storyline and Final Thoughts
As for the rift, the film shows this as being exacerbated by a revealing book that the trainer is supposed to have authored (a plot point clearly modified from another source), and there is an interestingly conceived final conversation – although the heartfelt homage that Hamed is supposed to have given to his mentor after his passing is only referenced in the end titles, and not shown on screen. Some interesting material here, but the blows don’t land.
Giant screened at the London film festival and is available in UK and Irish cinemas from 9 January.