Less than half-way through The Fighter, I found myself struck by the complexity of the story unfolding, having expected a straight-forward telling of a boxer preparing for a fight and his drug-addicted brother. Brought to life by flawless performances (Christian Bale, Mark Wahlberg, Amy Adams and Melissa Leo), the history of two brothers, driven hard to succeed by their domineering mother, touches on the classic themes of loyalty, fraternity and personal conviction.

It is no wonder that Christian Bale won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his betrayal of Dicky Eklund. Once again, Bale shows his commitment to character through a sharp change in physical appearance. (Bale dropped 63 pounds for his role in The Machinist, a record weight loss for any actor to date.) And Hollywood rewards such sacrifice. Adrien Brody in The Pianist, Charlize Theron in Monster, Nicole Kidman in The Hours — all were handed their Oscars in celebration of transformation. Bale continues to surprise with his ability to so completely embody a new life.

As Dicky, Bale is twitchy and unreliable, as any crack-addict would be. But he is not just those things. He is also still a fighter who wants to see his brother succeed where he could not. He still has an eye on the prize, even though he is aware on some level of the binds of his addiction.

Meanwhile, younger brother Micky (Mark Wahlberg) gets the crap beat out of him in the ring, and starts to doubt that his mother and brother really have his best interests in mind. Enter love interest Charlene (Amy Adams), who helps open Micky's eyes to his options and the strings being pulled by his family.

As if this weren't story enough, Dicky is being filmed by HBO for a special program. Though from the beginning, Dicky tells everyone the program is about his "big comeback" as a fighter, we sense that there is something else going on. Eventually the program airs, forcing Dicky's family to face the realities of his addiction.

The movie is carried along by the main plot line — Micky's blossoming boxing career — and the fight scenes and climax to the big championship do not disappoint. But this would be just another Rocky were it not for the moving, dynamic relationships of a complicated family of winners and losers.

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