Sure this movie (about two old-time boxers getting back into the ring to settle a score) is contrived, generic, and thoroughly uninspired, but once you get past the “Rocky vs. Raging Bull” marketing hook, you actually get something that could have been a lot worse.
What Works: Stallone mostly phones it in doing a variation on his tough-but-vulnerable muscle man persona, but DeNiro steals the show, clearly liberated from playing the tough-guy/straight-man in so many movies. His a-hole boxer (everyone on screen seems to hate him) sparks the movie, and his relationship with his now-grown son (The Walking Dead’s Jon Bernthal who actually does look like DeNiro). Plus, this is the perfect movie to watch late at night on TV during a slow weekend, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
What Doesn’t Work: Kevin Hart is pushed down our throats as the comedic relief, and Alan Arkin may be old as dirt (and knows it) but that doesn’t make his shtick any less stale. This is the rare movie where the leads don’t need any sidekicks.
What I Would Have Done Differently: Trim about ten minutes, cut out the parts where Stallone resists the fight (since we know it’s false suspense), beef up the scenes where DeNiro is bonding with his son, and enjoy the movie for it is since it sure isn’t pretending to be anything more than that.