Over the years there has been no shortage of boxing films - from Rocky to Cinderella Man to Rocky 2 to Million Dollar Baby to Rocky 3... well you get the idea. The Fighter is based on the true story of Micky Ward. If you follow boxing then this film will probably be a foregone conclusion. For those of you like me who've never heard of Micky Ward, read on.

Micky Ward was a three time New England Golden Gloves champion. He won his first fourteen bouts and consequently enjoyed a meteoric rise. However the laws of physics say that was goes up must come down and Ward was no exception. He consequently lost his next four fights consecutively. In an effort to raise money for a badly damaged hand that required bone grafting from his pelvis to strengthen and fuse the bones, Ward worked on a road-paving crew.

Following the operation Ward's half-brother Dicky Eklund, who was at the time struggling with a drug addiction and had just been released from prison on drug possession charges, convinced Ward to take up boxing again. Ward was successful and won his first nine fights.

Ok, history lesson over. The Fighter is not completely true to the facts. However, like other underdog stories such as Seabiscuit, it is an inspiring film that is part love story, part personal drama, part action movie. I didn't need tissues, but there were a number of graphic boxing scenes as well as emotional ones. If you like history then this is a film not to be missed.