Undefeated

"Undefeated" is a shabby and hackneyed rags to riches story about a poor Latino boxer from Jackson Heights, NY who wins the a welterweight championship and finds the challenges in the ring are small compared to the challenges in his personal life. An unfortunate directorial debut for Leguizamo, this film shows us nothing new, is ill-focused, uneven, and full of cliches and two dimensional characters. As a human drama, "Undefeated" is a mediocre B-flick. As a fight film, it falls on its face and does nothing to give insights into the real, fascinating, and corrupt world of professional boxing. (C)