The Champ (1979)

The Champ is a 1979 American film remake of the the 1931 film directed by Franco Zeffirelli (in his American directorial debut), starring Jon Voight, Faye Dunaway and Ricky Schroder (in his film debut).

Plot
Former boxing champion Billy "Champ" Flynn (Jon Voight) now works as a horse trainer in Hialeah, Florida and has custody of his young son, T.J. (Ricky Schroeder) after his wife Annie (Faye Dunaway) left him seven years ago.

In order to give T.J. a better future, Billy comes out of retirement and works on his comeback, but things get complicated when his wife returns, wanting to be a part of T.J.'s life again.

Cast

 * Jon Voight as Billy "Champ" Flynn
 * Faye Dunaway as Annie
 * Ricky Schroeder as T. J. Flynn
 * Jack Warden as Jackie
 * Joan Blondell as Dolly Kenyon
 * Arthur Hill as Mike
 * Strother Martin as Riley
 * Elisha Cook Jr. as Georgie
 * Stefan Gierasch as Charlie Goodman
 * Mary Jo Catlett as Josie

Production
The filming for "The Champ" took place in Hialeah, Florida, Miami, Florida and Coconut Grove in Miami, Florida.

Originally, the film was supposed to star Ryan O'Neal and his son, Griffin O'Neal, but during the same year of the film's release, Ryan starred in another boxing movie The Main Event.

Robert Redford was approached to play the lead role after Ryan O'Neil withdrew from the offer, but when Redford wanted script changes that would've pushed the beginning of the film's principal photography, the production looked elsewhere.

Because the film didn't have an actor portraying the lead title role, the production was delayed from February to March of 1979.

For the role of T.J. Flynn, over two thousand kids auditioned for the role & Ricky Schroeder was chosen to screen-test for the role. The producers offered Schroeder the role on the condition that his parents would sign an exclusive seven-year contract on his behalf. At first, Schroeder's mother declined, but eventually, the producers relented and offered the role to Schroeder with no strings attached.

Jon Voight had a physically tough time working on the film and in order for him to do the fight scenes, he had to undergo an intensive training schedule. He was trained in boxing by Jimmy Gambina (who did the fight sequences for Rocky). It was reported that Voight declined to use a stunt-double and did all of the boxing scenes in the film himself.

Critical Reception
"The Champ" received negative reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it has a 40% rating based on 20 reviews.

Vincent Canby from the New York Times gave the film a negative review, saying: "The most offputting thing about such canny, tear-stained movies as The Champ is not their naïveté, but their unholy sophistication. These movies don't mean to deal with the world as it really is, but as it should be."

Accolades
1980 Academy Awards
 * Oscar for Best Music, Original Score: Dave Grusin (nominated)

1980 Golden Globes Awards
 * New Star of the Year in a Motion Picture- Male: Ricky Schroeder (won)
 * Best Motion Picture Actor- Drama: Jon Voight (nominated)

Young Artists Awards
 * Ricky Schroeder: Best Juvenile Actor in a Motion Picture (nominated)
 * Best Motion Picture Featuring Youth (nominated)