Enter Tick Wills (Forest Whitaker), a grizzled, no-nonsense trainer who runs a dingy community gym. Tick refuses to train Billy until Billy learns humility. The transformation is the crux of the movie: Billy must switch his stance, fight from the left side, and use intelligence over aggression. The thus uses the boxing stance as a metaphor for perspective—Billy has to view the world and his life from the opposite angle to survive. Jake Gyllenhaal’s Physical Transformation No discussion of the "southpaw movie" is complete without acknowledging Jake Gyllenhaal’s commitment. He is the reason the film transcends genre clichés. Gyllenhaal gained 30 pounds of solid muscle, training twice a day like a legitimate professional fighter.

A: No. The film ends exactly where it should—with the final bell of the championship fight.

A: Not at all. The boxing is the metaphor; the father-daughter relationship is the plot.

Billy lives a gilded life in New York with his wife Maureen (Rachel McAdams) and daughter Leila (Oona Laurence). However, the narrative takes a violent, tragic turn after a public altercation with a rival fighter, Miguel "Magic" Escobar (Miguel Gomez). A backstage scuffle turns lethal, resulting in the accidental death of Maureen.