Against the Ropes Plot

Against the Ropes is a 2004 drama movie. It was directed by Charles S. Dutton, in his motion-picture directorial debut. It is a fictionalized account of the American boxing manager Jackie Kallen, who was the first woman to become a success in the sport. The events in the film are not an accurate representation of Kallen's career, however. For example, Kallen was married and had two children while working in the boxing profession, but in the movie the character (played by Meg Ryan) is single.

Against the Ropes grossed less than $6 million in the US and was panned by critics, in part because of the resemblance to nearly all the other boxing movies, such as the Rocky series. As with other such movies, its climax is a bout for the championship.

The film begins with Kallen (played by Ryan) as an assistant to the owner of a low-class boxing arena. She gets into an argument with a boxing promoter named LaRocca. LaRocca, to express his disdain for her knowledge of boxing, intemperately offers to sell her the contract of one of his boxers, Luther Shaw, for a dollar. Kallen, seeing potential in Shaw, buys his contract from LaRocca and decides to become a manager. She hires a retired trainer (played by the director) to turn Shaw into a champion. As Shaw gets better, Kallen has to combat the prevailing sexism in the sport.