Boxing: the sport of large, bloody, sweat-drenched champions and apparently, Meg Ryan.
Taking yet another break from her usual genre of romantic comedy and taking a shot at something along the lines of \dramedy,"" Ryan portrays the role of real-life boxing promoter Jackie Kallen.
Kallen, a Detroit native, was among the first women to join the field of men's boxing and perhaps the most successful. ""Ropes"" follows her through the twists and turns of her ascent to the top as she promotes her first boxer, the fictional Luther Shaw (Omar Epps).
Despite the potential shown in the beginning of the film, the script lacks focus and originality. The issues of Shaw's cocky attitude and out-of-control emotions that seemed to foreshadow future problems in the ring were completely dropped almost immediately after they were introduced. This major potential for conflict was lost in the entertaining and flashy boxing montages that showed Shaw effortlessly winning match after match.
Instead, it is the over-inflated ego of Kallen that takes center ring, leaving the audience to endure the clich of the former underdog taking her success just a little too far. Kallen betrays a promise to a local sports reporter (Tim Daly) for an exclusive pre- and post-match interview with Shaw in order to get herself a personal profile on HBO Sports, which of course comes back to bite her in the tush, surprise, surprise.
Beyond this, ""Ropes"" also makes the mistake of failing to develop the relationships in the film. The unique connection between Kallen and Shaw is only hinted at and is further confused by what seems to be a brief romantic interest on the promoter's behalf, which dissolves but a few scenes later.
There is also a romantic relationship between Shaw and Renee (Kerry Washington), Kallen's friend and co-worker. The depth of their connection is also unclear and is ultimately of little importance.
The film ends in a ""Wizard of Oz""/""Rudy"" combo: all the people that helped Kallen make it to the top are packed into a crowded bar, honoring her with the sadly overused ""slow clap."" Daly, Epps, Washington, the Scarecrow-everyone and their mother are there to round up the film.
On the positive side, what the script lacks in quality, the movie makes up for in the individual performances of its cast.
Ryan takes a somewhat convincing turn as the headstrong character of Jackie Kallen. Her Detroit/urban Midwestern accent seems flawless and helps to push her away from the bubbly, well-spoken characters she is generally known for playing. And she didn't even have to appear topless to pull it off this time.
Charles S. Dutton and Tony Shalhoub, both in supporting roles, manage to give the film a small amount of credibility with their solid performances. The lovable and often goofy Shalhoub is more than convincing as a boxing-world sleaze. Dutton, as the experienced trainer and sidekick, refreshes the stock character of ""wise man"" with his grounded and mostly calm persona (think a combination of Pat Morita as Mr. Miyagi and Morgan Freeman in anything).
This film definitely should not be designated a ""must see."" If anything, it is really more of a rental: save a few bucks and skip past the third of the film that lacks a half-naked Omar Epps.
