The Ring is a 1952 American film noir boxing film directed by Kurt Neumann and based on an Irving Shulman novel. It tells the story of a young Mexican American male who becomes a boxer, believing this will gain him respect among the English-speaking white majority. The film was shot in various locations in early 1950s Los Angeles. The film examines institutionalized bigotry.[2]
The Ring | |
---|---|
![]() Poster of The Ring | |
Directed by | Kurt Neumann |
Based on | 1953 novel "The Square Trap" by Irving Shulman |
Produced by | Frank King |
Starring | Lalo Rios Gerald Mohr Rita Moreno Jack Elam |
Cinematography | Russell Harlan |
Edited by | Bruce B. Pierce |
Music by | Herschel Burke Gilbert |
Production company | King Brothers Productions |
Distributed by | United Artists[1] |
Release date |
|
Running time | 79 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
The film focuses on a young Mexican-American named Tomas Cantanios, who boxed under the pseudonym Tommy Kansas, a resident of Los Angeles's poor Chicano neighborhood.[3] He feels constrained due to his inability to thrive in a White-dominated society. Therefore, to achieve popularity, he becomes a professional boxer, achieving fame and recognition. But he soon discovers that Anglos are only drawn to him for his sports reputation, even while they still consider him an outsider because of his ancestry and skin color. In fact, the only two white men who treat him decently are his manager Pete and trainer Freddy. In a real sense, however, their tolerant behavior is based primarily on monetary gain. Tommy is also conflicted by his unconditional love for a neighborhood girl, Lucy, the daughter of a punch-drunk bum.
The Ring is one of the first Hollywood sports-centered films in which discrimination against Chicanos is presented. Its Mexicano/sports thematic ancestry can be traced back to the 1940s with films like The Girl from Monterrey.
General | |
---|---|
National libraries |