| | | Prove them wrong.
Features: DVD, Pan and Scan (TV Format), Dolby Digital (5.1), Dolby Surround Sound, English, Subtitled, French, Spanish, Dubbed & Subtitled
The story of a quick-tempered young woman who finds discipline, self-respect and love in the boxing ring. Once Diana decides she wants to become a boxer a boxer her priorities are forced into focus as she begins a grueling training regimen. She falls in love with a talented amateur and, under the careful tutelage of her trainer, she becomes the gym’s first female champion.
"...a near-irresistible button-pusher." J. Hoberman, The Village Voice
"...intelligent, gutsy..." Dallas Morning News
"...wins by a knockout!" New York Daily News
"...genuine grit and spirit..." Salon.com
Editor's Note
In GIRLFIGHT, Diana Guzman (Michelle Rodriguez) is a tough high school girl with a violent streak. Between problems at school, a father who belittles her, and a lonely social life, she searches for some way to find respect, love, and challenge. Diana finds all those things in the boxing ring at a gritty Brooklyn gym, where she begins training against her father's will and eventually earns the gym's championship for female boxers.Rodriguez's performance is what carries the film, as she makes the character of Diana Guzman real in every sense. Guzman is an awkward teenage girl whose only advantage is that she's angry. As she channels this anger into determination, she doesn't become a flawless heroine--when she gets punched in the face, it hurts--but the way she grows internally is visible, and that is the truly beautiful thing about this film. Director Karyn Kusama should also be commended for the film's subtle communication of difficult family issues and its objectivity in telling this slightly feminist tale. The inspiring soundtrack features a terrific title song by Theodore Shapiro as well as hits by artists such as Queen Latifah. A story of willpower, strength, and endurance, GIRLFIGHT wins on all fronts.
| Features | Digitally Mastered Audio & Anamorphic Video | | English 5.1 Dolby Digital And 2-Channel Dolby Surround | | French Subtitles | | Spanish Subtitles | | Widescreen Version | | "Making Of..." Featurette | | Trailers | | English Subtitles | | Interactive Menus | | Scene Selection | | Director's Commentary |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Columbia Tri-Star |
| Release Date: 3/22/2005 |
| Running Time: 110 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 2000 | | Catalog ID: 05668 | | UPC: 00043396056688 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English [CC], English, French Dubbed, Spanish Dubbed | | Available Subtitles: English, French, Spanish | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Widescreen/Standard 1.85:1/1.33:1 |
| Cast & Crew
| Awards |
Cannes Film Festival (2000) |  | Karyn Kusama, Winner, Young Cinema Award | |
Independent Spirit (2001) | | | Michelle Rodriguez, Nominee, Best Debut Peformance | | | Karyn Kusama, et al., Nominee, Best First Feature | |
Sundance Film Festival (2000) | | Karyn Kusama, Winner, Director's Award |
| Memorable Quotes| "Champions are made not born."----sign in the gym | | "Boxing is...brain over brawn."----sign in the gym | | "When you're not training somebody else is training to kick your ass."----sign in the gym | | "You can train, but you can't fight. Girls don't have the same power."----Coach Hector to Diana Guzman | | "You gotta learn how to manage your power because you've got a lot more of it than people realize."----Hector to Diana | | "Would it kill you to wear a skirt once in a while?"----Dad to Diana | | "Your mother was a receptionist in a very nice office. If you want money, get yourself a job." ----Dad to Diana |
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| | Professional Reviews | New York Times
"...[A] sweet and fierce directorial debut....[GIRLFIGHT] introduces a powerful, extraordinarily gifted young actress: Michelle Rodriguez. Remember the name..." 09/29/2000 p.E22USA Today
"...[Michelle Rodriguez is] an electrifying presence....A coming-of-age tale that truly floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee..."--3 out of 4 stars 09/29/2000 p.10E Entertainment Weekly
"...[Rodriguez is] incandescent....[Kusama] shows a clear, personal filmmaking style..." -- Rating: A- 10/06/2000 p.55 Rolling Stone
"...Michelle Rodriguez scores a knockout debut....GIRLFIGHT is a strong stinging film, alive with conflicts that defy glib resolutions..." 10/12/2001 p.99-100 Sight and Sound
"...The film features an exceptionally confident central performance by Michelle Rodriguez...whose jutting jaw and 10-mile stare hold the viewer's attention like a clamp..." 04/01/2001 p.53-4 Box Office
"...It's a daring vision, to be sure, and one that deserves attention and even admiration..." 04/01/2000 p.219 Los Angeles Times
"...A powerful and empathetic melodrama with feminist underpinnings..." 09/29/2000 p.C1 Chicago Sun-Times
"...Under the craft and drama of GIRLFIGHT, there is a certain real feeling of danger and risk....Michelle Rodriguez is ideally cast in the movie..." 09/29/2000 p.30 The New York Times 8 of 10
In recent years, athletes like Venus Williams, Rebecca Lobo and Marion Jones have given the world a new, intoxicating image of female beauty rooted in power and confidence as well as grace. Ms. Rodriguez is the first movie star--and she is, without question, a movie star--to embody this new ideal. Allow me one lame sports metaphor (after all, this is a review of a boxing movie): she'll knock you out. - A.O. Scott
Chicago Sun-Times 8 of 10
Rodriguez, a newcomer, seems to have a natural affinity for the camera. Her Diana hungers, she cares, she is easily wounded and quick to defend herself, and all of those qualities are simply there every scene; they don't need to be underlined, because Rodriguez brings them along. - Roger Ebert
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