The last thing Hollywood wants is another cliched boxing film with a protagonist who will breakout from anonymity, contend with an ugly paternal dispute, and then fight it all out in the ring. However, Girlfight has two distinct advantages: the film won the Sundance Film Festival in 2000 and boasting a no-name cast at the time. However, some might complain that Girlfight sucks all the motherly milk out of Diana (Michelle Rodriguez)'s plight.
Diana tries to make a name for herself in the ring as a less-than-helpful father (Paul Calderon) in a less-than-respectful role does nothing to inspire her. Although, while Girlfight sees the father vanish about two-thirds of the way into the movie, thankfully relieving viewers before the cliché becomes too apparent.
While not as bleak and scary as the project where she lives, Diana's school setting is far from the idyllic high school that Hollywood has long asked people to believe in. Despite not being as stark as Larry Clark's underappreciated "Kids," the adolescent tendencies and atmosphere in this film tell few lies. Even the racial and ethnic divisions, which are never discussed on video, are tangible in the overwhelmingly Hispanic cast.
Patrick Cady, the film's director of photography, manages to convey Diana's alienation from civilization by framing her to the right side of all close-up scenes and the rest of the cast to the left. In the middle of the shoot, he starts moving her on the left and everything else on the right. He returns to his original ways at the end of the film, completing the circle. When Diana appears to be the most hurt or excited, however, an exception seems to be made, and she is placed in the centre of the frame. Perhaps this is a boxing metaphor when she dances back and forth avoiding punches but is compelled to come in sometimes to either throw her best shot or be the target of her opponent's.
Heavy clichés are quick to critique and may sometimes ruin films. Yet, when pitted against a movie that many brave feminists would certainly hail as revolutionary, they all seem like a hopeless featherweight.