Manny (2014) Reviews

• Well-Made, Unexpectedly Emotional Documentary

  3xHCCH2014-03-13

  This documentary is about the life and career of Manny Pacquiao, probably the most famous Filipino celebrity the world over now. While we in the Philippines idolize him as our "National Fist," it would be very interesting to hear what other peoples have to say about him. The film was narrated by Liam Neeson. It starts with Manny Pacquiao contemplating on why he boxes. Pacquiao mostly narrates his story in Filipino (with English subtitles). We learn that he joined fishermen when he was a poor boy growing up in Sarangani province. He credited that experience for developing his physical strength. From there, we will meet various people who have influenced his life and career. Manny's mother Dionisia was restrained and sincere when she talked about his childhood. Too bad that would only be her only part in the film. His wife Jinkee had more participation, talking about their personal life. There was an obvious hesitation in some parts when she was going to say something negative, but that was understandable. Too bad there was no interview with his kids. It would have been good to know how he was as a father. The bulk of this documentary will of course be about his boxing career. We will meet his uncle Sardo Mejia who taught 12 year old Manny about boxing. His childhood friend Buboy Fernandez was trained by Manny to be his assistant trainer. We will get to learn more about Freddie Roach, his own career, how they met and their present relationship. Top Rank promoter Bob Arum and innovative conditioning coach Alex Ariza are also featured prominently. Former managers Rod Nazario and Michael Koncz were not so favorably mentioned. We get to witness the best scenes from Pacquiao's most memorable fights. There was that 1995 match with a certain Rossel, Manny's first significant win that started him on his winning path. There was that match vs. Hussein in 2000, the first actual match Jinkee watched live, and she was six months pregnant then. His first match in the US, vs. Ledwaba, which Manny convincingly won despite being a longshot. There were highlights of his matches with Barrera, Morales, Solis, Diaz, Marquez, dela Joya, Hatton (that chilling knockout), Cotto, Margarito (that unprecedented eighth world title), and Bradley (that controversial loss by decision). There was of course mention of the dream match which may never be, that elusive one vs. Floyd Mayweather. We will also see Manny's forays into the entertainment scene. There were movies like "Wapak-Man" and "Anak ng Kumander", which did not exactly get good reviews nor good box office. There was his singing "Imagine" on TV with Will Ferrell. We see inside footage of Manny recording "Sometimes When We Touch" in Capitol Records, with no less than Dan Hill himself coaching him (which I found so funny). There was also a quick montage of his multiple product endorsements locally and abroad, many of which we have not seen before. We will see his career in politics as congressman of the lone district of Sarangani. There were even predictions posed about a possible presidency. There was also footage from a prayer meeting where Manny was the motivational speaker. There were thoughts shared about how these other activities were affecting his boxing career. The celebrities they interviewed were also interesting, from Mark Wahlberg to Imelda Marcos! It was heartening to hear testimonies of Manny's greatness from foreign boxing experts, how he is mentioned in the same breath as Muhammad Ali. It was not all roses and plaudits though, as his early financial problems (not yet the tax woes) and many vices were also brought up. This must have been a nightmare to wade through all the footage and media appearances and edit it together into an inspiring and truly touching feature-length documentary such as this one. One of the directors is Leon Gast who won an Oscar in 1996 directing another documentary about boxing "When We Were Kings." That film was about the iconic Ali-Foreman "Rumble in the Jungle" match. The other director is a Fil-American Ryan Moore. This is Moore's first commercial film project. I think "Manny" succeeds in its aim to craft a fair character study of a man who came from nothing, who pushed himself to achieve great things for himself and his whole country. This is a very well-made documentary feature, unexpectedly an emotional film which will move many to tears.

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• An Interesting Biopic about a Boxer with much Greater Ambitions

  JustCuriosity2014-03-12

  Manny appeared to be well-received in its world premiere at the SXSW Film Festival. The film is certainly informative for those of us who haven't followed Manny Pacquiao's multi-faceted career carefully. His story of his rise from a hut in an obscure Philippine village to international superstar is a truly impressive rags-to-riches tale. He has managed to successfully leverage his boxing career to move into other arenas including acting, music, religion, product endorsement and most intriguingly now politics. His determination and hard work are extremely impressive as he has risen to become a transcendent figure in the Philippines. The film has a bit too much footage of too many fights and lacks in-depth analysis of who the man behind the fighter really is. The film often strays from documentary into hagiography so that it doesn't feel like a truly objective presentation. It comes off more like an extended campaign biography for his future political career as his boxing career is winding down. Some of the metaphors such as Manny as a "fighter" who fought for the pride of his country and now will fight for the people of the Philippines feel a bit forced. It is difficult to tell if his recent focus on his faith reflects a genuine transformation away from his past sinful ways - drinking and womanizing - or a political tool to enhance his future political career. The film remains informative and entertaining, but needs to be taken with several grains of salt.

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• how the world of boxing works

  vilagossz2014-12-01

  the movie is very interesting documentary about Manny Pacquiao's life, success, and actual behind the scenes things. but i have a different take about the movie than most people, i think it really just showed how corrupt boxing can be, in a very subtle way, and how stars are made. the movie was mainly just about Manny, but for me it opened my eyes about many things. bare with me a little. I think the true purpose of this movie is just to subtly tell people how corrupt Bob Arum is. i even read his wikipedia page, and it is full of controversy, how he bribed people. SPOILER: so the ending was obviously just Bob arum trying to make a new star for people, the new young guy Bradley, so he paid the judges off... interestingly, he sponsored BOTH boxers, the fitness guy even told us many times how Manny is used, and Bob is the only one making profit here. there are many subtle hints by Mayweather too that he won't fight with Manny until he is sponsored by bob arum .fearing of lawsuit they don't say anything bad about him, they just implied he is paying off judges, by saying "how can a guy at 105pounds win against a much skilled guy who is 150 pounds... he CANT..." first seemed idiotic statement since he won against them. but the end got me thinking that all Bob did was to make a legend to make more profit for himself (and for Manny too at that time). to make a legend you need him to win in all leagues, meaning he IS a good fighter but people were probably bribed along the way (judges, maybe fighters, etc, i don't know) without knowledge of Manny. there was a win by decision of him too which should have been a loss. (probably judges paid) but this time he was on the winning side, because his sponsor Bob Arum still had plans with him, making him into a legend. but then when he became a legend, it was time for a new champion and more money, the ending with Bradley. that judge decision was so bad, that in wikipedia it states WBO's Championship Committee would review the video of the fight with five independent judges. people made a vote and even asked some other professional boxers/commentators what do they think about it, and all of them gave it to Manny. but doesn't matter, only NSAC can change the result. and they didn't, so later they had a fight again with Bradley which was won by Manny. so good to keep this in mind how stars are made and how hard working honest people are used in that world. disgusting. but the movie was an eye opener for me, and i guess they couldn't focus more on Bob Arum's corruptive nature due to fear of lawsuits for defamation.

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• A Means To An End.. and thanks to the producers

  A_Different_Drummer2014-12-05

  At the end of the day, when all the die-hard fans have had their say, this film will be remembered mainly for introducing Manny to a wider audience. Which, to be clear, is a very good thing. I have seen a lot of boxing films, and attended a number of live fights. I do believe that Manny by his very example has added a new chapter to the history of the sport. His speed, power, accuracy, and ability to throw at angles that would mystify even a geometry teacher -- these are awesome skills to behold. And his willingness to move outside his weight class, time after time, bespeaks a heart bigger than Wyoming. If not for this film, I would never have seen all this, and for that I thank the film makers. Which leaves the topic of the film itself. First, what is the yardstick? If you do the research you will find that more feature films (bipic and documentary) have been done on Ali than any other boxer. Fortunately for this review, I have seen them all. How does Manny compare, as a film? Not very well, I am afraid. It wanders and it lacks focus. If Manny boxed like the director of this film directed, he would have knocked out while still a teenager. In fairness, with Ali, there was a natural story arc in the way the entire world gave up on him going into the Foreman fight, and Manny's story lacks that central theme. That said, it is still a weakish film.

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• Great Documentary and A must view for Manny Pacquiao fans

  jmigoya2014-12-02

  If you've followed Manny Pacquiao's career then have a basic understanding of what the Documentary is about, I say basic because this goes really deep, it doesn't pull any punches (no pun intended)it shows the devastating KO at the hands of Marquez in slow motion with such clarity and from different angles even more clearly than I've ever seen it, it reminded be of how clear the Kennedy Assassination was shown in the movie JFK, well the KO is shown more clearly than you've ever seen it, but it's necessary to tell the tale of Manny Pacquiao, sure it's a bias documentary, after all it's about Manny Pacquiao so what can you expect, this film was produced prior to the Brandon Rios fight, so I wouldn't be surprised if this documentary evolves to include more recent events up to maybe including the Mayweather match up, it shows a more detailed relationship between Manny Pacquiao and Alex Ariza, these guys were friends for sure, sad they're not working together anymore, the relationship between Freddie Roach and Manny Pacquiao is more of the father and son type, they love each other and it's shown in great detail, you'll see what a hectic schedule Manny had and why we saw a decline in his skills due to being unfocused leading up to the Marquez KO, there are limitations to everyone without exceptions and to how much you can fill your plate up before it overflows, this is show again in detail, his Politian schedule, his fundraising events, his preacher appearances, his singing concerts, his live appearances on Jimmy Kimmel, fight promotion tours etc. then add at least a couple of hours a day training at the boxing gym, and you can understand why something had to give, the tale is told beautifully, and leaves you uplifted at the end, truly a one of a kind man, one of the nicest men you'll ever meet, a humble man who consoles others after his devastating KO loss, a man of unwavering faith, and consoles those who are saddened by his loss with a simple "God wanted it this way for a reason" and God knows best, what a powerful message this documentary sends, you'll understand what I mean, it's not just a boxing documentary, it's also a motivational video and much more

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