The Harder They Fall

Movie Review: The Harder They Fall (*** out of 4 stars)

Year of Release: 1956

Country of Origin: USA

Director: Mark Robson

Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Rod Steiger

Plot outline: Ex-sportswriter Eddie Willis hypes a naïve Argentinean boxer for a shady boxing promoter Nick Benko (IMDb).

The story (***)

How the story unfolds (*** the script keeps things moving quickly and does a great job showing just how the boxing underworld builds up fighters, while at the same time delivering a human drama accessible to non-boxing fans)

The characters (***)

The dialogue (***)

The acting (*** Bogart retains the undeniable charisma that made him a star; Steiger injects just enough showman into the part to be credible, but avoids overdoing it)

Overall rating *** out of 4 stars