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Poster for Resurrecting the Champ

Resurrecting the Champ

Based on a true story, that was based on a lie.

2007 · 1h 52m · PG-13 Drama
Directed by Rod Lurie

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Overview

Up-and-coming sports reporter rescues a homeless man ("Champ") only to discover that he is, in fact, a boxing legend believed to have passed away. What begins as an opportunity to resurrect Champ's story and escape the shadow of his father's success becomes a personal journey as the ambitious reporter reexamines his own life and his relationship with his family.

Director and cast

Critics on Rotten Tomatoes

Top critics, in their words

All reviews
60%
Tomatometer
Fresh

Resurrecting the Champ is authentic in its newsroom scenes, and appropriately concerned at how entertainment value trumps diligent reporting.

Tom Charity, CNN.com
Rotten

Despite one great performance and an intriguing setup, the work is crippled by another performance that's nowhere near great, and a storyline that makes it impossible to root for the leading man.

Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper
Fresh

Champ is a solid effort with a lot going for it, but it suggests that Lurie still isn't willing to relax and let viewers interpret his films.

Tasha Robinson, AV Club
Rotten

The movie itself -- which deals (not very interestingly) with the issue of journalistic integrity and (very predictably) with father-son relationships -- doesn't pack much of a wallop.

Joanne Kaufman, Wall Street Journal
Fresh

While Resurrecting the Champ seems to be just what you expect, it's only when you've let your guard slip that you realize it's hiding something altogether more forceful in its glove.

Geoff Pevere, Toronto Star

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