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This film features a talented ensemble, telling the real-life tale of coach Brendan Ingle, who mentored a brash Sheffield teenager from Middle Eastern migrant family. Dubbed “Prince” Naseem Hamed, the youngster was taught to stand up to racist bullies and transformed into a media-friendly world champion in the late 90s. Ingle cultivated his showboating arrogance and powerful punches, but after achieving wealth, Hamed betrayed his coach, cutting him out and turning him into a blend of John Falstaff and Broadway Danny Rose.

Cast and Characters

Brosnan plays the trainer; Amir El-Masry embodies the part of the prince, and Toby Stephens is the bullish promoter Warren, who saw the potential that the coach had discovered.

Where the Movie Falls Short

Yet, the film frankly lacks the fighter’s agility: the fight scenes run smoothly, but the crucial drama in between is consistently flat and one-note. There is no subtlety or light and shade in the depiction of Hamed himself, and the actor, an otherwise outstanding performer, isn’t given the chance to display any subtlety or much of what might make his role truly engaging – even though he’s clearly been training and looks very plausible in the boxing arena.

Dialogue and Music Issues

The story is often burdened by utilitarian, expositional dialogue that inform you exactly what is going on and what we are meant to feel (“You started your career at age seven …”). This is the kind of script that streaming-TV executives call “second-screen”, ensuring you understand what’s going on while you’re viewing the film but also glancing at your phone. Additionally, the background music is overbearing, at times nearly deafening, especially in the moment where Hamed gets too excited calling on the promoter in his palatial residence.

Acting and Pivotal Scenes

Although El-Masry and Brosnan do their considerable utmost, their relationship never really comes to life, and the big set-piece boxing moments are frequently disappointingly cut short. A key scene is surely when, provoked past his limit in the training facility one day by the boxer as a delusional “elder”, the trainer actually offers to step into the ring and box him. Everyone in the room is stunned and uneasy. In what way is this extremely risky confrontation going to play out? What will be the outcome? Surely the Prince is going to defeat him? Alternatively will he sentimentally pull his punches? It’s not clear.

Highlights and Humor

That’s not to say that there are no some nice jabs. Brosnan elicits humor when Ingle 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”. Amusing too when Hamed fidgets at the silly antics Ingle makes him do in the early days: acting like the “monster from the Middle East”.

Storyline and Final Thoughts

Regarding the rift, the film shows this as being exacerbated by a revealing book that the trainer is allegedly authored (a plot point evidently modified from prior material), and there is an interestingly imagined final conversation – however the heartfelt homage that the boxer is reportedly paid to Ingle after his passing is merely referenced in the end titles, and not dramatised on film. There is engaging content here, but the blows don’t land.

The film was shown at the festival and is available in British and Irish cinemas from January 9.