"Hands Of Stone" Is The Amazing Life Story Of Boxer Roberto Duran

DETROIT (WWJ) - This is one amazing story. Before I went to see "Hands of Stone," I thought it was a movie just about that world-famous fight between Roberto Duran and Sugar Ray Leonard. While it is that, it's a whole lot more, as well. And the fact that it's more than a movie about boxing was instrumental in actor Edgar Ramirez's decision to accept the role of Roberto Duran.

"Of course, I was very excited about playing this boxer, Ramirez said, "but when I read how relevant beyond boxing his life was for an entire country, and therefore, for an entire region, then I got even more excited."

"Hands of Stone" provides an inside look at Duran's home life -- beginning when he was a small child growing up in Panama -- and his career, showing how he grew up fighting on the streets, to training to become a professional fighter, and then capturing the Lightweight and Welterweight championship titles.

When you're on the outside looking in -- as is the case with the majority of us -- it's impossible to know what someone is going through; what truly motivates them to become who they are. In Duran's case, he had a lot to fight for: his dad, a U.S. Marine who had an affair with a Panamanian girl, abandoned the family; and at a very young age, he found himself doing what he could to help feed the family. With Panama under U.S. occupation, he also grew up with not just a strong desire -- but he felt the need -- to avenge his country's honor.

With all of that in the back of his mind, when the offer came around for him to fight Sugar Ray Leonard, it was an opportunity that Duran just couldn't pass up. And, as history would show, it turned out to be one of the best decisions of his life because he ended up handing Leonard his very first defeat.

I can give you three very good reasons to see this movie:

1. If you remember that infamous 1980 showdown between Duran and Leonard ...

2. If you're even a casual boxing fan ...

3. If you just like a good movie with an excellent story line, because as I mentioned previously, there's a lot more going on in addition to the boxing match.

Oh, and there is a fourth! If you saw Usher during his publicity tour, you may have heard him spill a secret. You'll not only get to see his perfectly-sculpted abs, there's a love scene where you get to see a pretty good shot of his derrière.

See you at the movies!

Be sure to tune in to WWJ Newsradio 950 every Friday for my weekly look at the movies with Midday Anchor Jackie Paige.

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