Billy Hope (Jake Gyllenhaal) is an undefeated boxing champ. Both him and his wife Maureen (Rachel McAdams) are orphans from the system in Hell's Kitchen. He is getting harassed by upstart Miguel Escobar. They fight in the lobby and one of Miguel's men shoots Maureen killing her. Billy is distraught. Facing a financial squeeze, manager Jordan Mains (50 Cent) convinces him to fight. He loses and gets suspended. He also loses daughter Leila to Child Services. He seeks help from trainer Tick Wills (Forest Whitaker).

Jake Gyllenhaal gives it his all but he's overwhelmed by an overloaded Kurt Sutter script. He has more tragic turns than Job. Granted, it is almost entirely his doing which only makes Billy more infuriating. He's a meathead which doesn't necessarily fit Gyllenhaal. Gyllenhaal does get his anger. He throws everything and the kitchen sink at this character. So does director Antoine Fuqua. There is no denying the power from the pairing of Fuqua and Gyllenhaal. The script overload may be exactly the wrong idea for the duo.