The Fighter: Christian Bale's movie.

The first on my double bill of Oscar films on Toonie Tuesday at the Movies: The Fighter Christian Bale is phenomenal in this film. He dropped over 30lbs to portray Dicky Eklund, Micky Ward's older (half) brother. Although Mark Wahlberg's name is at the top of the billing for The Fighter, this is Bale's movie. When he's not on screen, you're waiting for him to be back on, and when he's not in a scene, it's a notch less visceral than when he's on.

Dicky is almost 10 yrs older than Micky, and was a boxer as well, who even fought Sugar Ray Leonard in the late 70s, but is now a crackhead, as well as Micky's trainer. The story may be about how Micky finally gets a shot, gets himself together and out from under his mother and brother's shadows, but the far more interesting story is about Dicky. Bale is so good, so scene stealing, it makes others pale in comparison. Mark Wahlberg is good as Micky, most of his acting coming from showing the conflict between loyalty to Dicky and his family, and wanting a chance to make it.

Amy Adams and Melissa Leo both got nods for Best Supporting Actress for their roles as Micky's girlfriend and mother respectively. Adams is an actress I can't stand, so she must be good if I didn't despise her in this film. Leo is great because of how much I despise her portrayal of Micky and Dicky's mother Alice. Leo creates a character that's just so living in denial about Dicky's drug issues and the fact that he's 40yrs old and won't be having a comeback, that she's ruining the potential of Micky, and using his career as a way to run her life. I'd hate to be one of the 5 daughters, as Alice obviously loves Dicky more than any of them, with Micky a distant second.

One pivotal scene has Micky forcing his mother to accept that he needs a chance, and he needs to be the focus for once, and not Dicky. Solid acting and I won't be disappointed if she walks away with the Oscar. But on the whole, this isn't a Best Picture winner.

Christian Bale should walk away with Best Supporting Actor (though I've yet to see Geoffrey Rush's performance in The King's Speech [I will in the next 48 hrs]). His performance is so powerful and he inhabits the role so deeply, you'd think it was who he was all the time. For me, there are a few scenes where Bale simply rises to another stratosphere: when he's in prison and going through crack withdrawl in his cell; when he gets out of prison and leaves the gym saying he has to go somewhere (code for crackhouse); and in the final fight scene when he tells Micky that it's his time to take it, because he (Dicky) was never good enough.

Great performances in this film, Bale first and foremost, but without that, it wouldn't be nearly what it is.