The pantheon of boxing movies gets a (kind of) new entry with a look at the life of New Jersey heavyweight Chuck Wepner. And if you’ve never heard of The Bayonne Bleeder, it turns out he might just be a bit more familiar than you think…

Director: Philippe Falardeau

Screenwriters: Jeff Feuerzeig, Jerry Stahl, Michael Cristofer and Liev Schreiber

Synopsis:

*Spoilers* Bayonne, New Jersey, 1970s. New Jersey State heavyweight boxing champion, Chuck ‘The Bayonne Bleeder’ Wepner, is a local hero, famous for his showmanship and his ability to take a punch (as well as how much he bleeds when he does). To make ends meet, he takes up a liquor route while waiting for his shot at the world heavyweight title. Despite his success, he suffers from insecurities, self-doubt and a need to be loved by the masses. He also has a self-destructive streak that leads him away from his wife, Phyllis, and young daughter into the arms of other women. After one such encounter, Phyl leaves.

Chuck gets his chance for the title when heavyweight champ George Foreman takes on Muhammad Ali, in the ‘rumble in the jungle’ in Zaire. Ali unexpectedly wins, meaning Chuck loses his shot. He is despondent until his manager tells him that fight promoter Don King wants Chuck to fight Ali for the title in Cleveland. Suddenly, Chuck is in the big-time, surrounded by media and given the red-carpet treatment. No one gives him a chance against Ali, calling it a fight between “an artist and a house painter”. Chuck is determined to win. Phyl is persuaded to come to the fight. Chuck loses, with the fight stopped with a few seconds left, but he takes Ali to 15 rounds and even knocks him down at one point. He returns home to a hero’s welcome. He meets bartender, Linda, who impresses him with her boxing knowledge. He wants her but she’s not interested.

Chuck finds out that over in Hollywood, a certain Sylvester Stallone has made a film inspired by Wepner’s life and his Ali fight. He and Phyl go to see the film. He’s greeted as the “real Rocky”. The movie goes to Chuck’s head and he throws himself into the party lifestyle, complete with drugs, booze and girls. It starts a downward spiral for Chuck. Phyl kicks Chuck out for good. Chuck’s self-destructive behaviour continues. He is forced to fight wrestler Andre the Giant for the money.

Rocky cleans up at the Academy Awards. Chuck is jubilant and attempts to share his celebration with his estranged brother, Don, who is unimpressed. Chuck tries to reach Stallone in Hollywood but fails. He manages to track him down in New York. Sly is excited to meet Chuck. He is making a Rocky sequel and wants Chuck to star. Chuck goes to read for the part, but he’s under the influence of drugs and screws it up.

Back home, Chuck gets involved in selling drugs. He shows up high to a school meeting with his daughter – a new low. He goes to see Linda to commiserate. They get closer.

Chuck is set up by a police sting and gets arrested for possession with intent to sell. He calls Linda from the police station. His brother shows up unexpectedly to bail him out. Linda comes along. She points out that Chuck has people who love him just for who he is; not because he’s a fighter. Linda tells him she doesn’t want to see him anymore.

Chuck does 23 months in prison. Phyl divorces him. He writes to Linda and to his daughter. When he gets out of prison, Chuck goes back into the ring – fighting a bear for the money. Linda is at the humiliating fight. They get together. An endnote reveals that Chuck and Linda still live happily together in Bayonne, and that he reconciled with his daughter.

Analysis:

*Spoilers* The story of a self-destructive boxer finding some level of redemption is certainly nothing new and films that have covered this territory are compared, usually unfavourably, to the greats, most notably Raging Bull (1980). Given the well-trod subject matter, it might be tempting to overlook The Bleeder (or Chuck as it’s known in the US). However, there are several things of interest. One is the cast, which is top-drawer. A second is the fact that Chuck’s life inspired the iconic and multi-Oscar winning Rocky (1976). A third is the irreverent way in which the filmmakers tackle the story.

As Chuck, Liev Schreiber brings the necessary bravado and swagger, while looking the part as a fighter and managing to turn this somewhat pitiful character into a compelling screen presence. The success of this film rests largely on Chuck’s charisma, which bobs and weaves around his self-destructive nature. The extensive use of Chuck’s humorous voice-over narrating episodes from his life works to the film’s advantage on this front. Chuck’s efforts to sabotage his own life do tend to stray towards the tedious, but Schreiber rescues things to the point that his happy ending with Linda (Naomi Watts) is welcome, if a tad abrupt. Elsewhere, we have Ron Perlman as Chuck’s grizzled manager, Elisabeth Moss as Chuck’s hurt, ballsy wife, and Michael Rapaport as the angry brother who still has a soft spot for Chuck. Also worth mentioning are Morgan Spector as Sly Stallone and Pooch Hall as Muhammad Ali, both of whom invoke the spirit of their well-known real-life counterparts.

Throughout, the film is a feast for the eyes and ears, from 70s kitsch to the sing-along soundtrack to the visceral fight scenes (that show just how Chuck got his bloody nickname) to some raunchy nightclub antics. The filmmakers immerse us in Chuck’s world and let him lead us through it, both the highs and the lows. The film is also peppered with interesting clips, including from Chuck’s favourite movie, the Anthony Quinn vehicle, Requiem for a Heavyweight (a.k.a. Blood Money) (1962), a film he knows by heart and often recites. The colour palette for the film tends towards warm oranges and yellows, further enhancing the authentic 70s feel.

Where The Bleeder really gets interesting is the melding of fact and fiction to achieve a kind of ‘enhanced real life’ effect. This is achieved partly through the use of real footage from the time and incorporating new footage shot in the same grainy newsreel style.

For example, during the build-up to the Ali fight, there is some archive footage of a press conference, complete with the real Don King. The camera then pans across the fictional characters, shot in the same grainy archive style, with Chuck addressing the crowd. On fight night, we get archive footage of the crowd being interviewed by a reporter and the real Ali being shepherded to the ring. We then cut to the same archive-style footage of fictional Chuck making his way to the ring. We then cut to archive footage of the real James Brown singing the national anthem before the fight. There are also examples of Chuck watching himself being interviewed on TV and headlines taken from the newspapers.

The technique of blending fact and fiction comes full circle at the very end of the film, in a clever parting image, before we find out what happened to the real Chuck.

It also extends to the Rocky connection. We get Chuck going to see the actual movie then later interacting with a fictional Sly and even acting out a scene from a planned sequel in which Chuck was slated to star. As a side note, it’s interesting that, in reality, the relationship between Wepner and Stallone was rather complicated, with a lawsuit being settled out of court in 2003. The film’s director, Phillippe Feuerzeig even commented to ESPN:

“In my opinion, Sylvester Stallone hijacked Chuck Wepner’s soul. This film is my attempt to help Chuck get his soul back.”

While the end result of his efforts doesn’t quite reach the heights of a classic boxing movie, it is an entertaining look at the life of a man who inspired one.

Overall, when the real-life subject is involved with a biopic, there is a danger of things being watered down. While Chuck’s self-destruction couldn’t go five rounds against Jake LaMotta’s, his life is laid bare, warts and all, with the cast and filmmakers bringing the story vividly and authentically to life. It is also fitting that Chuck finally gets his moment to shine on the big screen. This is a story whose main strengths lie in the telling, finding compelling ways to show us Chuck’s undeniably interesting life. In the words of (fictional) Chuck:

“Sometimes life is like a movie; sometimes it’s better.”

Go further:

Here is an interesting article from USA Today on the real Chuck Wepner: https://eu.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2017/05/02/who-is-real-rocky-chuck-wepner/101158422/

Take a look at the trailer: