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This film features a talented cast, depicting the true story of Irish boxing trainer Ingle, who guided a cheeky Sheffield teenager from Yemeni migrant family. Known as “Prince” Naseem Hamed, the youngster was taught to stand up to prejudice and molded into a celebrity titleholder in the late 90s. Ingle nurtured his flamboyant arrogance and powerful punches, but after becoming rich, Hamed betrayed his coach, cutting him out and turning him into a mix of John Falstaff and Danny Rose.

Performers and Roles

Brosnan plays the trainer; Amir El-Masry takes on the role of the prince, and Stephens appears as the assertive promoter Warren, who recognized the goldmine that Ingle had uncovered.

Film’s Shortcomings

However, the film honestly lacks the Prince’s agility: the boxing sequences run smoothly, but the crucial drama in between is consistently flat and one-note. It lacks nuance or light and shade in the portrayal of Hamed himself, and the actor, an otherwise excellent talent, doesn’t get the chance to display any subtlety or much of what might make his role really interesting – even though he’s obviously been training and looks very plausible in the boxing arena.

Dialogue and Music Issues

The drama is repeatedly burdened by functional, explanatory lines that tell you exactly what is happening and what we are supposed to be thinking (“You started your boxing journey at seven years old …”). This is the sort of script that digital producers call “second-screen”, ensuring you understand what’s unfolding while you’re viewing the film but also glancing at your device. Additionally, the score is overbearing, at times nearly overwhelming, particularly in the moment where Hamed gets overexcited calling on the promoter in his palatial residence.

Acting and Pivotal Scenes

Although the leads do their very utmost, their dynamic never really comes to life, and the big set-piece boxing moments are often disappointingly cut short. The most important moment is certainly when, goaded beyond endurance in the training facility one day by the boxer as a delusional “old man”, Ingle in fact proposes to get in the ring and box him. All present in the room is shocked and uneasy. In what way is this extremely unwise confrontation going to play out? What will be the outcome? Certainly the champion is going to kill him? Or will he sentimentally hold back? The resolution remains ambiguous.

Bright Spots and Comedy

That’s not to say that there aren’t some good moments. Brosnan elicits humor when Ingle tells a journalist what he’s instructing the kids from his neighborhood: to oppose prejudice and when you encounter a offender, “Hit them in the bollocks”. It’s funny too when Hamed fidgets at the silly stunts Ingle makes him do in the early days: posing as the “beast from the Middle East”.

Storyline and Final Thoughts

Regarding the rift, the film shows this as being exacerbated by a tell-all publication that Ingle is allegedly authored (a story element evidently modified from prior material), and there is an interestingly imagined final conversation – although the emotional tribute that the boxer is reportedly given to Ingle after his passing is merely mentioned in the closing credits, and not dramatised on screen. There is interesting material here, but the punches don’t land.

The film screened at the festival and is available in UK and Irish theaters from January 9.