2015’s One More Round tells the story of Jack “The Jackhammer” Taylor (played by Tommy Lee Thomas).
Once upon a time, Jack Taylor was a big-time boxer, a contender to be worldwide champ. But eventually, he burned out on boxing. On the night of the “big fight,” he failed to show up. Now, he works at a furniture store. He spends most of his time sleeping and having dreams of the life he once had. When he makes a big sale, his boss tries to steal Jack’s commission. That’s not a good thing because Jack really needs that commission. His wife is getting frustrated with Jack’s inability to get his life together. His scheming mother-in-law all sorts of lies about him. Jack’s in trouble!
Finally, Jack does the one thing that he swore he would never do again. He returns to boxing. He steps into the gym that is owned by his uncle (Kevin Sorbo) and asks for another chance. He trains with Franco Turelli (Franco Columbu). He prepares for the fight against the fearsome B.A. Fontana (T.C. Stallings), a fighter who is so aggressive that he even takes a swing at a referee at one point. Throughout it all, Jack prays and feels that God is leading him back into the ring.
Along with Kevin Sorbo, there are some familiar faces in One More Round. Jeremy London appears as Brock Thornhill (now there’s a villainous name!), a man who courts Jack’s wife during their separation. Donald James Parker of Gramps Goes To College fame appears as one of Jack’s co-workers. It’s actually interesting to see Parker here because this is one of the few Donald James Parker performances in which he’s not playing a character who comes across as being super-aggressive and bitter. Instead, he just comes across as being a nice old man who reads the Bible and offers up spiritual advice. Parker’s character here comes across as who Parker was trying to play in Gramps Goes To College before that film became about Gramps telling off all the pointy-headed, liberal intellectuals who make up the academic world. This film features the nice version of Gramps!
That said, the majority of this movie is taken up with boxing. I actually like most boxing films. There’s something thrilling about watching two men punch each other until one of them collapses. I mean, it’s the type of thing to which I should probably object on humanitarian grounds but I can’t help myself. Boxing is (usually) exciting. The best boxing films present the fight as being modern-day gladiatorial combat. Unfortunately, the boxing scenes in One More Round aren’t particularly impressive. The low-budget is obvious as the film cuts from scenes inside the ring to shots of people in the audience, all pretending to be watching a boxing match. Neither one of the actors playing the boxers is particularly believable as a professional fighter.
In the end, I always have my doubts about any film that suggests that God picks sides when it comes to sports. I’d like to think that God would be like me and just hope that both teams have fun.
